Roses are Red
by Running to Stand Still
Summary: The original storyline for the most part, but I've added a new character to it... Still visiting Tresure Planet, and maybe beyond that... Check it out and review, I'll return the favor!
1. Rose

(A/N: I had this idea, and even though people may have written better versions of fanfictions similar to mine, I'm taking a shot at this. So review for me, I want to know whether or not to continue... And if you review for me, I'll return the favor! I've got a few chapters done already, and ready to publish, but will stop whenever if people don't like it. I wanted to write this for a long time, since I saw the movie actually... But could never get it donw on paper. My mind is so fickle sometimes! And keep an open mind while reading this, that's all I have to say. Actually, I wanted to say more, but forgot what that was... Oh well... REVIEW and I'll give you a clone of Morph... He's so gosh darn loveable! - My friend said that today and have repeated it to get on their nerves...)

**Discalimer: I don't own Treasure Planet... I wish I owned it though becuase it is the work of geniuses!**

Chapter 1

I'm a fifteen year old girl; I live on Montressor, the small mining planet. I have nothing going for me, nothing to live for.

I'm a dropout. In my father's words I'm "a piece of worthless trash." I think those were the last words he spoke before he left me. Good, I could care less what he said to me; he's gone and I'm happy. As far as I'm concerned, I'm a nothing, nobody. I don't matter.

My mother had left when I was… I think, seven. I dunno, I don't remember her too much; she wasn't around, and when she was, she avoided me.

I work at the Benbow Inn, at least when I'm home I do. Most days I run off, leaving poor Mrs. Hawkins to handle the place on her own. But she does have help, her son, Jim Hawkins, works bussing tables… when he is home. We're both misfits I guess. One of the few things we have in common.

Actually, scratch that, we have a lot in common. Both of our fathers have left us, and both of us are dropouts. We're misfits, just like I said before. We have nothing going for ourselves, and frankly, we could care less. At least his mother cares about him though, I really have no one. But he doesn't notice me, not many people do.

Mrs. Hawkins sees me; she says she cares about me and what I do with my life. She doesn't want Jim or me to end up throwing our lives away. I tell her not to worry, I can handle myself. Sure, she's lost most of the things that matter to her, and the old Benbow isn't attracting the crowds it used to, but she keeps trying. _Why!_

I notice people, I like to watch them, see what they do in all their spare time. Most people don't like when I watch them, it's not like I'm doing anything wrong. A lot of days I sit in this old industrial park on a tiny bench and watch people. I sleep there on cool, warm nights, staring of into space. Most nights though, I stay in one of the old, shutdown mines.

People think I'm weird, and they avoid me. But I'm not weird; I just like to express myself.

Maybe it's my appearance that turns people off. I'm a normal height for humans, somewhere around 5'5", and I'm pretty fit. All that running from cops does that for you. I'm not the cleanest person ever, not saying I don't take showers, but the industrial park is a dirty place to hang out. My hair, at the moment, is my natural pale, whitish blonde with artificial crimson red tips, like a red rose. My eyes are this "electrifying blue," Mrs. Hopkins thinks they are the most beautiful eyes ever. Most people on Montressor have dull colored eyes and hair. Not me, that's probably why they think I'm weird. I'm not like the normal people on Montressor.

I'm supposed to work today, and I'm really hungry, so I'll show up I guess. I should call Mrs. Hawkins, but I'm out of money and don't have a phone to call her with.

"Hey kid, come here for a second," I yell to this little alien kid. He's got a long snout and is wearing a blue and white baseball outfit, complete with a cute little hat. "It's okay, I'm not gonna mug you or anything," I say flashing him a rare smile. I hold up a small coin, he comes over hesitantly. A little money really does wonders.

"Yeah," he says.

"Can you run to the Benbow Inn for me and tell Mrs. Hopkins that Rose will be there today?" I ask him. He nods his head. "'Kay, hurry… and say I'll be in at noon." He runs off, I notice an adult is watching me closely. I sit on the park bench and close my eyes, smiling to myself.

He'll never realize it wasn't a real coin until it's too late. Hell, it might spend it before anyone realizes it's a fake.

"Hey Rose, are you working today?" Someone asked as I drifted to sleep. Seeing as I'm probably the only one named Rose on Montressor, the voice must be talking to me… or an invisible friend. I open my eyes and sat up quickly, recognizing the voice suddenly.

"Yeah," I say smiling, "Sadly I have to; money doesn't just grow on trees here. Although, I guess it apparently does on some other planets. I'll have to take a little trip there soon… Is the mom making you work?" Jim smiled; holding his homemade solar-surfer in one hand, balancing it on the ground.

"Mhmm," he responds. "Well I better get going, I hear there's been some work going on at the old mill, I'd better check it out, make sure it's still a good place to hang out," he said winking mischievously.

"Have fun, and don't get caught again," I yelled as he hopped on the solar-surfer and took off. He smiled and waved over his shoulder. Jim was gone in a matter of seconds, but the sound of the solar-surfer still rang in my ears.

I noticed Jim, but he rarely noticed me. And if he did, it wasn't in the same way. And I noticed most girls noticed him, he was the hot bad-boy they all liked. But he wasn't up to the standards their parents set. And they weren't all necessarily human girls either, which is something that always freaks me out. But I noticed other things about him, not just the stuff on the outside. Like how he was smart, both street and book. He picked up on stuff quickly; he built his solar-surfer when he was little, before my mom had left me. So he had to have been pretty little, he's only a year older than me. I liked Jim, and no matter how much I tried to convince myself that it was only a school-girl type crush thing, I knew it was more than a little crush…


	2. Meeting

(A/N: Little fickle-minded me is back! Three cheers... I thought I'd publish this chapter as well, so people have something to really look at and read... Sometimes just reading one chapter isn't enough... In this case, it might not have been... So review, and you'll get that Morph clone! And if you have any ideas, I'll gladly hear them out, and if I like them use them! So I hope you enjoy this next chapter! P.S. I'll update once a week usually, or twice if I can... But I take three honors courses, play production, and run cross country. I also am in several clubs, so my time off is pretty rare!)

**Disclaimer: I didn't own it last chapter, this one is no different. Maybe next chapter that will change! Maybe it won't...**

Chapter 3

It was noon, and I was late for work. I was running down the crowded streets and I was stopped by the Robo-Cops, yet again. The guys are real idiots; just 'cause I'm running doesn't mean I committed a crime. Or maybe it does…

"Sorry Mrs. Hawkins," I said as I ran into the kitchen. Customers were staring at me as I darted back there. "The cops held me up again." She smiled nervously.

"It's okay, you're here… You didn't do anything wrong again did you?" She asked as I tied a dirty apron around my waist.

"Of course not, it's only when I don't do stuff they stop me," I said smiling widely. Her face dropped. "Just kidding Mrs. H, besides, I stopped all that stuff a while back. They're just keeping me toeing line… and making me late for work." I grabbed a small sketch pad and headed out to the restaurant, tying my hair up in a messy bun.

"Rose, have you seen Jim at all today?" Mrs. Hawkins asked me, clearing a table off. I nodded my head slowly wondering what to say so he didn't get in trouble with his mom for being late again. "Well, did he mention where he was going?" She asked coming back from the kitchen. I shrugged.

"He didn't say, but he did say he was coming in to work around noon or one," I said, lying slightly. So what if I covered for him, he covered for me on some of those bad days…

"Well, when he comes in, tell him to come see me," she said hurrying off to do some washing and whatnot.

"Hi, what can I get you today?" I asked a small group. It was a family, the mom and dad were playing with the little boy and girl. Even though they weren't even human, I still felt a very small bit of jealousy towards the children bubble up inside me. _They left you,_ I told myself quickly, _they didn't want you. These kids aren't aware of how awesome they have it though…_

"We'll all have the usual please, Mrs. Hawkins knows what that is," the large man replied. I nodded; so did I.

"Okay, I'll be right back with that, anything else?" I asked, tucking a stray piece of hair behind my ear. I ripped the piece of paper off the pad and sent it to the kitchen.

"Excuse me, Mrs. Hawkins, my juice!" a tentacle clad customer yelled above the loud chatter.

"Yeah, but I'm not Mrs. Hawkins," I said, setting a juice on her table. It sloshed threateningly, I hoped it wouldn't spill, prayed it wouldn't spill on her, and left the bill on the table for the woman to pay. The front door flew open and two Robo-Cops rolled in, Jim stuck between them.

"Jim!" I heard Mrs. Hawkins gasp. She dropped her tray on the ground, glass shattered, and the Benbow became deathly quiet. _Oh no Jim, you said you wouldn't get caught,_ I thought.

"'Kay guys, see ya' later, I can handle it from here," Jim said. He headed forward, but one of them held him back, pulling him back to the doorway. They always had to make a scene of something as simple as this. Jim looked angrily at the ground, avoiding the laser-like gazes people were giving him. He looked up for a second and found my eyes, he shrugged and frowned.

"Hold up boy," he said in a monotone. Couldn't they at least give these freakish things emotion? It bored me to listen to their voices day in and day out like I'd always ad to. "Mrs. Hawkins," he said to the pale mother. She nodded her head, shock still visible on her face. I'd thought Jim was turning around… "We apprehended you son operating a solar vehicle in a restricted zone, in other words, trespassing."

"This is moving violation nine-zero-four, section twelve, paragraph, um-" the one that hadn't spoken yet said.

"Twenty," Jim mumbled, staring at the ground when he spoke.

"Yeah, paragraph twenty," he amended quickly. "This is a violation of his parole; any more slip-ups will result in a one-way ticket to juvenile hall."

"Don't worry," Mrs. Hawkins said through clenched teeth. "It won't happen ever again." Jim's head hung, he avoided eye contact with everyone at this point, knowing if he didn't, he was screwed.

"Don't worry," the first one said. "We see this type all the time, more now than ever. They make bad choices, become _losers_." It seemed like it looked directly at me when the thing spoke. He turned to the other Robo-Cop, "Let's motor." Their little hats raised and they whistled as they left through the door. "How about we go get some coffee and donuts at a _respectable_ place?" I thought I heard it one of them asks the other.

"Get to work, we'll talk about this later," Mrs. Hawkins said. Her voice sounded strained, like she was trying her hardest not to burst at this very moment. Jim picked up a bin and started to clear empty tables, still avoiding eye contact. Everyone was still staring, but slowly they went on with eating and talking. I slowly cleaned up the dishes that Mrs. Hawkins had dropped and dropped them in the trash.

"Excuse me, Miss Rose," someone called. I looked up, and saw a man sit down. He waved me over. I took out my little notepad.

"Hi, welcome to the Benbow Inn. What can I get you?" I asked with a fake smile on my face. Suddenly I wasn't in the mood to play waitress. I wanted to just sit down and stare at the sky like I always did.

"I'll just have some coffee please," he said, staring intently at me. _Coffee, now that's one we don't get too often,_ I thought.

"I'll be right back with that," I muttered. He was a little freaky, and you can trust me on that one; we see some pretty freaky ones at the Benbow. I hurried to the kitchen, and served a few meals and handed out more purp juice. Every time I looked his way, the man was staring at me. We locked gazes, and I bumped into someone.

"Sorry," Jim mumbled.

"It's okay," I said, totally distracted. I hurried to the back, looking for Mrs. Hawkins. "Sarah, come here quickly!" I said loudly. Both she and Jim appeared in a flash.

"What's wrong honey?" She asked.

"Who is that man out there, the one sitting alone at table twenty-six? He's wearing the old coat and a hat," I asked; pointing him out through the tiny window food was sent through.

He was staring at me still; a chill kept going up my spine when our eyes would lock, which was very often. Her mouth dropped and she gave a small gasp upon looking at the shady man. Jim and I remained wondering who it was. I didn't like be left in the dark.

"I'll be right back, you two stay here," she said leaving through the swinging door. He was still staring at me. Sarah arrived at is table and I watched him ignore her for a moment.

"You have no idea whom that the guy is?" Jim asked. I shook my head, and then tucked the same piece of hair back in place.

"Do you know him?" I asked.

"He looks familiar, but I can't think who he might be…" he said trailing off. "It seems he must like you," Jim taunted. I hit him lightly on the arm. Mrs. Hawkins was now talking to him, pointing to the back where the two of us stood. The conversation seemed to be a little heated, but neither of us could make out what they were saying. Their voices were hushed, not even the people sitting around them looked very interested in the conversation. The man stood and left, Mrs. Hawkins returned to the back. I realized he didn't pay.

"He thought he recognized you Rose, that's all," she said.

"But he knew my name," I said. She shrugged.

"Someone else might have said it and he just picked up on it," she said. "Now go back to work honey, if he comes back in, just come get me." I nodded and carried some plates out to the dining area. I felt a little shaky now… _no one_ had said my name yet today.

"Excuse me, miss, I would like to rent a room please," an elderly woman said.

"Okay ma'am, I'll be right back with Mrs. Hawkins," I said setting my last plate down on the table. "Mrs. Hawkins, a woman would like a room," I called into the kitchen. I dropped a dish as I loaded a stack onto my arms. _Oh crap, not again. How many dishes am I going to break while working here? This must be a record for any waitress!_ I bent to pick it up, but Jim grabbed the broken piece quicker.

"Go serve those," Jim said, "I'll clean it up and bring you a replacement dish."

Soon, the Benbow began to empty, and as it did, I became bored.

"Mrs. Hawkins, I'm going to bring out the trash," I said. "Then I'm going home."

"Go ahead honey, take a jacket with you, it's raining pretty hard out there. I'll see you tomorrow," Mrs. Hawkins called. I took a cape from one of the pegs on the wall and tossed it on, tying it below my chin. I retrieved the two bags of trash from kitchen and carried them out the backdoor.

The rain was pouring down; I stopped to adjust my hood, and then threw the bags into a dumpster. I slowly made my way back inside. It was closing time; the only customers were this older couple and Doctor Doppler. The doctor was talking to Mrs. Hawkins, most likely about Jim's little encounter with the law today. I shook my head, sad that Jim was still getting caught. A rock landed close to where I was walking. I looked up on the roof and saw Jim sitting there, a smile on his face. I waved up to him.

"Come on up," he yelled. I ran over to the side of the building and climbed up the trellises that ran up the side of the inn. Jim's strong hand helped pull me all the way over and we sat under the eaves of the house, safe in the most part from the rain.

"Thanks," I said softly. He nodded his response.

"They're talking about me," he said, gazing through a window at his mother and the doctor. He ran his hand through his drenched hair, sighing deeply. "Nothing I do is right. I mean, I wasn't even doing anything wrong when they found me. I was walking down the road, they pretty much made that stuff up about the violations; I was long gone from the industrial park when they found me. Those jerks just won't get off my back…" I felt bad, and I really wanted to say something. But what could I say?

"You could hang out with me," I said. "I sit on a bench and they slap the cuffs on me for something weird." He smiled and laughed softly.

"That's because they have to make up for the times you weren't caught," he said. I punched his arm.

"I'm a little angel, I never did anything wrong," I said, having trouble hiding the smile from my face. He laughed and I blew it, cracking up really hard.

"I wish I could do something right for once," he said, serious again. I stared out at the dark clouds, watching as they moved swiftly across the sky.

"Hey, that guy is back," I said jumping up and hitting my head. I rubbed it hard, hoping there wouldn't be any blood, and laughed once at my own stupidity, scowling at the same time. Jim followed my gaze and we saw the man pacing by the entrance of the Benbow. "Something is telling me he's going to be trouble," I whispered. Jim remained silent, eyes glued to the dark figure, trying to guess who he must be. _He's so familiar, yet so strange at the same time… Alright, he's more strange than familiar, but still…_

"Jim, where are you?" Mrs. Hawkins called from the doorway below us. She stepped into the rain, but jumped back to avoid being soaked. "Jim, come here!"

"I better go see what she wants. I don't think she'll stop until I go down there. Are you working tomorrow too?" He asked; stalling because both of us knew what was coming.

"Mhmm, yeah, I need some money, as usual," I said forcing a laugh to come. I was still staring at the guy. He was still pacing back and forth, but he stopped every few steps and looked at the inn.

"I'll see you then I guess," he said as he disappeared down the side of his house. "And be careful," he said, poking his head back up and motioning towards the guy.

"Yeah, I'll watch my back… A little more than I usually do," I said waving bye to him.

"Jim, where are you?" Mrs. Hawkins yelled again. Her voice carried and echoed. She was just visible to me. "Where are you?" I smiled at her, she was too kind.

"Right here Ma," he said, "What's up?" She ushered him inside, away from the rain. I listened, ear pressed to the glass.

"_You_ know what's up," she said, her tone serious, almost harsh. I took that as my cue to leave. I jumped down from the roof and headed down the path, I noticed the man was still standing there. I ignored him as I went by.

"Miss, excuse me," he called. _Do I stop or not? Jim said be careful, Mrs. Hawkins said to tell her if I saw him again, what do they know that I don't?_ "Miss," he said, catching up to me and turning me by the shoulder. _Stop it is I guess. But if he even _thinks_ of trying something funny…_

"What buddy?" I hissed; venom in my voice. He stared at me, I felt uncomfortable; so I turned and continued on my way.

"Rose, come here," he called. I ignored him, but my pace quickened. I wasn't afraid, but something told me I should be, that I should be wary of this man, whoever the hell he was. "Rose, stop and come here now!" _What does he want!_

"What?" I asked irritably. He remained silent, so I ran off.

"Rose, I'm your father, listen to me!" Those words made me stop dead in my tracks. _You heard him wrong, he isn't your father. Your father left you, he wouldn't come back._

"Who are you!" I asked, I knew what he'd say, but I dreaded it. _Ignore him Rose, don't listen. Block your ears, this is only going to bring you trouble. The piece of scum left you, he didn't want you. Don't give him a chance to drag you back in!_

"I'm your father. I'm sorry I left, but you know it was a hard time in my life. Your mother left me alone with a daughter. I didn't know how to raise you, so I panicked. I'm sorry I left you, but I didn't know what to do," he said. We were standing close now, his face only a few inches from mine.

"You're a piece of scum, you know that right?" I hissed. "You left a little girl- a little helpless girl- alone, I had to fend for myself. I was only eight, and I learned to take care of myself, by myself. I had no help from you- none! Now you come back and want my forgiveness? What, are you? Like a retard or actually stupid?" I yelled. His hand collided with the side of my head suddenly, hitting just below my temple, near my eye. I didn't see that coming and fell to the ground.

"You little piece of crap!" he yelled at me. He kicked me once in the chin; my head snapped back, and I saw stars and tasted blood. I was hit again in the stomach, I felt sick. I was now soaked, the rain was pouring down and I was covered in mud. I looked up at the man and he looked evil, outlined by a flash of lightning. Talk about a freak.

"Get away from me!" I yelled, tears coming to my eyes. _This freak has snapped; what a freak!_

"I came back to take care of you, and how do you repay me? You little bitch!" He yelled, kicking me again and again, not caring where he hit me. My stomach and chest, luckily, got the worst of it.

"Dad, stop," I cried.

"At least I came back for you! Where the whore you call mother gone? Hm, has she come back yet? She doesn't are about you. And frankly, I don't either." He was a fricking nutcase, I just wanted this to stop, and I didn't care what he said. He had snapped in two seconds.

"Stop," I said softly. I was in pain, every time he'd kick me, new pain was released. I was getting tunnel-vision, and knew this wasn't good.

"Hey, leave her alone!" I heard a familiar voice yell. A solar-surfer landed nearby, the familiar sound of it bought me back to reality.

"Who the bloody hell are you? She's my daughter; I'll do what I want with her!" My "father" roared at Jim. If I wasn't on the ground, I would have laughed at his attempt to scare Jim.

"I think I heard her tell you to stop, so stop buddy. I don't care if you're her father. If you touch her again, you'll pay," Jim said, he sounded so calm and cool.

"Don't tell me what to do kid, and learn to pick your fights better. You have no clue what's going on." My father stood between Jim and me, so as Jim tried to get in between us, my father kicked me again, hard in the head. Jim lunged at him and caught "dad" off-balance.

"Get off me, you freak," I heard one of them yell. My head hurt too much to figure out who had said it. Their little fight resumed on the ground, and then, when it was over, my "father" was running off. I couldn't make out what he was saying, but I knew it was a threat.

"Rose, can you hear me?" I heard Jim ask.

"Mhmm," I said. I nodded my head, but that hurt too much, so I stopped quickly. I took a deep breath and found that even that hurt. My damn "father" had really snapped, how could you hit your daughter if you loved her?

"Come on, I'll take you back to my house. My mom will fix you up," he said, lifting me up.

"Ow," I said louder than I intended to.

"Sorry," Jim said as me to his solar-surfer. He stepped on and we sped off. I could feel everything getting kinda fuzzy again, but I fought it off. I had to stay conscious.

"We're here." The little trip seemed too quick too me; it too a few minutes to get back to his house usually. Maybe I lost consciousness after all; maybe my attempts to stay awake were useless. He stepped off and hurried to the front door. "Mom," he yelled as he kicked the front door open.

"I'm in the kitchen Jim honey," she said. I could hear water running.

"Hurry in here, Rose needs help," he said. I felt the soft couch under me, and heard Mrs. Hawkins in the room.

"What in God's name happened to her Jim, did she get into a fight!" She exclaimed when she saw me.

"It was that guy… her _dad_," he said quietly. I felt soft hands on my face.

"I knew this would end badly, but not like this. I told that man to stay away, that she didn't want anything to do with him," he mother said rambling.

"Mrs. Hawkins," I said softly, "why didn't you tell me he was my father?" She paused with all her flitting around. Something cold as pressed against my temple, sending shivers up my spine.

"I didn't want for you to chase after him or anything. He doesn't deserve to have a daughter as good and beautiful and kind as you," she said, wiping my face with a cold cloth. It stung when it touched my new bruises and cuts. "Why don't you rest now Rose, we can talk about this in the morning?" A light turned off, leaving me in the cool dark, and I slowly drifted to sleep. I didn't want to sleep yet, I wanted answers to all the questions that were bouncing around my head.


	3. Solarsurfing and in Town

(A/N: Chapter three... here it is, a little earlier than I expected of course... So read and review, when I get a to a total of **six**reviews, then I'll update. sorry for being cruel, but I just want to know if people are reading this or not... So read and review, I'll return the favor!)

**Disclaimer: Sorry, I still don't own this... Makes me sad... Very sad...**

Chapter 3

I woke to bright sunshine and a massive headache. The former I gladly welcomed because it meant it was no longer raining. I hated the rain so much; it meant I needed to find a dry place to sleep. The latter made me feel like crying. It meant that last night had been for real; I hadn't just dreamed it up. I sat up, holding my head in my hands, feeling sick.

"Hey, you're finally awake," I heard Jim from behind me. He slid down the banister on the stairs and landed without a sound at the bottom.

"Yeah, sadly," I mumbled. "My head is gonna explode," I said silently to myself, not wanting to bother Jim or his mother anymore than I already had last night. I forced a smile, "Thanks for last night." He nodded.

"I better get my mom, she wanted to know when you woke up," he said. He left and I jumped up and ran to a mirror by the door. I cringed at my own reflection, which definitely says something. One eye was slightly bruised and swollen, and blood was caked on my face. Mud and dirt were plastered onto my face and neck. _Yuck, you look disgusting girl! _I thought to myself.

I tried to wipe some of it away, but I needed a shower, it wouldn't just simply come off. My clothes were muddy and still damp as well. Actually, I needed new clothes; these were ripped and worn well beyond repair. I usually didn't mind, but for the sake of Mrs. Hawkins and the Benbow, I needed new clothes soon.

"It's good to see you up," Mrs. Hawkins said running down the stairs. She was still in her nightgown. I found that unusual; on most days she would already be at the inn, cooking breakfast for the many early morning customers and few guests the Inn had…

"What about the inn?" I thought suddenly. She waved it off.

"I got Molly and a few other people to cover it for me today," she said, smiling.

"Why did you do that? I'm fine; I'll just run down to the Inn and take a shower in one of the rooms like I always do. I'll be just fine after that," I said. I knew money wasn't flowing into the Hawkins household; I didn't want them to lose a day's worth of money because of me. I felt like a burden already.

"Its fine honey, I'll let you take a shower here, you can rest up. I can get you some of my clothes to wear and then get you some food. It'll be fine. I haven't had a day off in…" she paused to think, a wide smile on her face. "Well, I haven't had a day off in a long time." Her smile spread to my face. The water turned on in the bathroom upstairs and she shook her head. "Well, you can take a shower when Jim is done, if he hasn't used all the hot water that is." We both laughed.

"Um, can I ask you something Mrs. Hawkins?" I asked. She knew what was coming, she looked nervous.

"Of course honey," she replied.

"Why did both of my parents leave me?" I asked. Tears were in my eyes, I brushed them away. I could tell she didn't expect this question. I had debated what to ask her first; this was the one I really wanted answered. "Am I really all that bad? I mean, they left for some reason, and neither of them bothered to take me with them. It's just, I dunno, people look at me funny and don't give me the light of day…" Tears were streaming down my face, I couldn't help it. I had been thinking about it all night before I'd finally fallen asleep.

"Oh Rose, is that what you think? You're not the reason they left," she said, pulling me in for a hug. "They were young and didn't realize what they had gotten into. It wasn't anything to do with you; it was what they did to themselves. They weren't in love, they didn't realize what being married entailed. The little love they shared died down, and they had their disagreements. Your mother left because of your father, on top of many other things, and you father… Your father had his own reasons to leave, I'm not sure what they were, but I know it wasn't because of you. It definitely wasn't you that made either of them leave. They loved you; they just didn't know how to take care of you." The tears continued to pour down, even though Mrs. Hawkins had made me feel a little better.

"I know, but it's just… All these things happen to me, it doesn't seem fair to me…" I said; my voice barely louder than a whisper. I heard the shower upstairs turn off, and the only reason I noticed it was the sudden silence it left us in.

"Come on, I'll get you some clothes, and then you can take a nice, hot shower. How's that sound?" She asked. I loved being around her, she was the most caring person I knew.

"That sounds like the best thing I've heard in a while," I said, wiping away the tears and smiling a truly genuine smile for the first time in a really long time. She led me upstairs to her room and we picked out an outfit for me to wear. It was simple, something I could wear wherever I went today, a pair of too long jeans, a dark blue tank top, and a white one to wear under the blue tank top, and some white, beat-up sneakers. She kicked Jim out of the bathroom, and showed me how to work the very complicated shower. There had to have been at least ten knobs to turn just to get the water running, and another five or so to turn the shower on.

"The clean towels are under this sink," she said pointing to a stack of towels, "use as many as you like." And then Mrs. Hawkins left the bathroom.

"Finally alone," I muttered to myself, starting the hot water. I stepped into the stream and felt myself practically melt. My tight muscles loosened and I felt instantly better than I had before, which was definitely a major improvement.

The water was very dirty, I'll say that much. I felt so much better without the dirt and blood caked to my skin. I began singing random lines to songs, softly to make sure no one heard me.

I finally turned off the water, knowing I had probably used all the hot water that had remained. I quickly dried off with a big fluffy towel, hand drying my hair and brushing it until all of the knots were out. I dressed quickly, the clothes were warm and I wanted them to stay that way forever. I stepped out of the bathroom and hurried down to the kitchen, tying my hair into a wet, messy ponytail.

"You look much better," Mrs. Hawkins beamed. She set a dish of food in front of me and I immediately ate.

"I feel better," I said between mouthfuls. Jim came down the stairs, dressed once again in the same tan shirt and greenish pants.

"Slow down, I didn't save you last night to have you choke on the first meal you eat!" he teased. I feigned choking quickly, and then resumed shoveling food into my mouth.

"Hahaha," I joked. "I haven't eaten in forever, but I haven't forgotten how to." All of us laughed softly at that. They didn't realize I was totally serious. Jim sat next to me and quickly ate a bowl of cereal, and then he was off, solar-surfer in hand.

"Bye girls, I'll see you at dinner," he yelled over the sudden roar of the solar-surfer.

"I guess that means you'll be staying for dinner tonight," Mrs. Hawkins said, a large smile on her face.

"Yeah, I said, washing my plates in the sink, "but first I've gotta go out and do some shopping. Do you need anything?" She ran to a drawer and pulled out a list.

"Could you do two things for me?" she asked. I nodded. "One, pick up these things at the store; I'll pay you back later. And two, be safe please. You know what I mean, if your father is around please just being sure to keep a good distance between the two of you." I nodded my head again, fully happy to comply with the latter as well as the former of the two requests.

"Is this all, it isn't a big list," I said as I read it over.

"Positive, it's only Jim and me here usually, we don't need too much," she said, a smile on her face. I headed out the door. "Oh, and Rose," she called out the window. I ran back inside.

"Yeah, what's up?" I asked.

"You can take one of Jim's extra solar-surfers; he has _plenty_ of them up in his room. You can jut go pick one out and use it. I'm sure he won't mind at all," she said. I smiled at this, happy. I loved riding solar-surfers; I just didn't have the money or the supplies for one.

"Thanks," I said, running upstairs. I ran into his messy room, avoiding the piles of unused mechanical pieces and children's toys that littered the otherwise pretty-neat-for-a-boy room. I grabbed the one I was familiar with borrowing, one of the junky ones I'd learned to ride on. I ran back downstairs, out the door, and took off…

I landed at the gates of the closed mine a little while later. It beckoned to me, _Come in and ride for a while. You won't get caught, it's an empty mine, perfectly safe, just a quick ride won't hurt anyone…_ My God, I was half crazy! I turned back to the town, running, but as I hopped on, turned back to the mines. _I'll be quick, no harm done in a little ride,_ I thought to myself. I went quickly through all of the old, unused machines that littered the mining area. Finally, I reached the crevice.

It fell only God knows how far down, apparently to the center of Montressor where it was met by fiery pits. I left the sail fall to the down position on the board, greatly decreasing my air resistance, as I fell straight down the hole. The wind whistled by my ears, deafening my sense of hearing at one point. I held my breath as I pulled up, hovering in midair. _What a rush!_ Looking up, I saw I was miles below the surface of the planet.

"Cool," I said to myself. My echo bounced off the earth, greatly magnified as I laughed. Then it was close to silent, and I was happy with that. The solar-surfer hummed contently.

"What are you doing down here?" A voice asked. I almost fell from my spot in the air because of my shock from hearing the voice. The voice laughed at me, causing me to scowl.

"Who the…?" I asked myself. Looking down I saw Jim sitting on a ledge, his solar-surfer hanging in the air next to him. His voice sounded so different down here, but that's all the sound bouncing off the walls. I'm sure I sounded different as well.

"What are you doing down here?" I asked, smiling.

"I'm wondering what this girl is doing down in the middle of nowhere, and how she got my solar-surfer from my room for the billionth time," Jim said, smiling crookedly. "What about you?"

"Not much really, wondering how I got this lost on my way to the store in the center of town. And trying to figure out how I missed some boy sitting down on a ledge below me." We both laughed, the echoes continuing long after we stopped.

"You're not too observant I see," he said.

"Nope, blind as a bat," I joked. I really was a little blind; my left eye was still swollen shut a little bit. It was silent, save for the sound of the hovering solar-surfers.

"He really hurt you last night, didn't he?" Jim asked after the silence that seemed like it would last at least forever. I nodded my head. "I don't mean by beating you up, I mean, your feelings and emotions. He made you feel like dirt, right?"

"Yeah, but I'm pretty used to that stuff though… Both of my parents did leave me after all," I said softly, knowing he could hear me because of the magnifying echo. "I always wondered what I did wrong, why they left me like they did. I was alone and it made me think that I was worthless and unwanted." I slowly dropped altitude and sat next to Jim.

"I know what you feel like, well sorta'," Jim said. "My dad left, but at least I have my mom still. I blamed myself for a while too, until one day my mom finally explained it to me so I could understand it. I knew it wasn't my fault. I blame my dad for leaving, if he ever comes back, I swear I won't give him the light of day." I stared straight ahead.

"I know now not to give a crap about them… If I had known before, then none of that would have happened last night," I said.

"Hey, at least I got to play hero for once," he said. "My mom had been yelling at me, so I was coming out here to cool down… It was a good thing I did." It was silent.

"Jim, um…" I said, stumbling over what I was trying to say. _You idiot, just say it! "Jim I like you!" It' only four words, just eleven letters, very simple… Say you stupid girl!_ "Thanks Jim, I mean it, I dunno what I would've done if you didn't show up." I looked up to the sky. _You're a little chicken, Rose!_ "Wanna do some shopping with me?" I asked. I knew instantly what his answer would be. "_Rose, are you half-crazy or what! Can you even _picture_ me going shopping?" I'm half-crazy for even thinking to myself._

"Why not, it doesn't sound too bad? I've got nothing else to do," he said, jumping onto his solar-surfer and flying up a little. I followed directly next to him.

"Really… or are you kidding around with me!" I asked, not wanting to be victim of yet another joke.

"I'm serious," he laughed. I smiled and laughed too. "Where are we going?" he asked, hesitant now. We were gaining altitude fast, but the actual surface was still a ways above us. We'd been down a few miles at least, and going up was always slower.

"Your mom wants some stuff, and then I need a few things, it shouldn't take over an hour. You gonna chicken out now?" I teased.

"Are you asking me if I'll chicken out of something like going shopping! Never in either of our lifetimes," had Jim said, flying faster ahead of me. As we neared the blocked off entrance, we saw a dark figure standing there.

"What the hell is this!" I yelled, frustrated. We turned sharply to the left, over some mountains, avoiding the figure that we knew was my dad. This was getting me mad. Would he hang around and ruin my life?

"Let's have some fun with him," Jim said smiling evilly; the contagious smile. I nodded. We cut back to the right, gaining speed until everything around us was a blur. The little dot neared us; I aimed right for him, and then pulled up, watching his long hair clip the edge of the board. I yelled happily and slowed as Jim and I neared the mountains.

"If anyone finds out we did that, we're dead," I said while laughing.

"Well, we better hope no finds out then… And if they do we just deny it. We were shopping, right?" We laughed as we headed towards town. "We'd better walk for a little while; usually the Robos are up this way." Almost gracefully, Jim walked off his board and didn't miss a step as he picked up the solar-surfer and continued walking. I, on the other hand, had to actually stop and get off, rather primitive compared to him. We waved to the two Robo-Cops as we went by, they watched us intently. We laughed once out of earshot, and jumped on the solar-surfers and took off slowly. Mine made a strange noise, and as I slowed, it suddenly did a nosedive, sending me face first into the ground.

"What the hell?" I yelled jumping up. I'd scratched my chin on the rocky ground, and it was bleeding slightly. I wiped it with my shirt.

"What'd you do!" Jim asked smiling but confused, landing beside me. He looked at the solar-surfer that now lay in two pieces on the ground. I shrugged.

"It just died on me," I said. "I'll pay you for it, I'm real sorry." He waved me off, not caring about the solar-surfer. It was old and junky that's why I borrowed that one always.

"Are you okay?" he asked. I smiled.

"I'm fine."

"Good," he said laughing. "Can you go more than a day without getting hurt or something?"

"Apparently not," I said shrugging. I watched him lower his closely to the ground and slide his feet back.

"Come on, just leave it here for now, we'd better get my mom that stuff," he said. "We can come back for it later. Its not gonna get up and fly off or anything."

"Wait, we're gonna ride two on a surfer?" I asked; he nodded his head, like this was something he did everyday. "Is it safe to do that?" I asked, nervous. I didn't want to be responsible for two of Jim's solar-surfers braking in one day.

"I never did it before, how would I know. And I'd imagine its safe, but I don't know now. You are a bit of a jinx I think," he teased. "Lately I think bad luck is following you. What black cat did you get on the bad side of?" I punched him playfully and he acted all hurt.

"Jerk," I mumbled, stepping in place. Suddenly, I realized I had a trillion butterflies in my stomach. Jim was standing so close; I could feel his warm breath on my neck. _Holy shit! Suddenly I'm not too sure about this situation!_ I thought. He took off, too late for backing out.

"I'm letting the sail up," he said and the sail snapped into place. I turned and held onto the grip, one of Jim's arms on either side of me. I nearly melted. "What store are we going to?" he asked.

"I dunno, we need to go to a few I think," I said shrugging. He nodded and we picked up speed.

We landed right in the center of town, after avoiding Robo-Cops, knowing they'd want to book us for something. I jumped off and Jim followed suit. People stared at us, not many people rode surfers into town, even though it _was_ legal.

"I'll grab the stuff for my mom," he said ripping the list from my hands. "You go do whatever you're gonna do. We'll meet at the ice cream shop." I smiled and ran over to a secondhand clothing store.

"Can I help you miss?" A woman asked when I walked in. She was sorting out a rack of clothing and headed over to where I was looking.

"Um, no, I' just browsing for now," I said quietly. I didn't shop in town very often, and this was the reason why. I'd walk in and people thought I was up to something.

"Well, we have some lovely new clothing items in the _back_, why don't you go look there?" She said. The woman stood very close to me, talking in a low voice. Her breath smelled like coffee, something rare here.

"Yeah," I said, tossing a nice shirt over my arm. "I know; I have shopped here before. I'm looking up here right now. And I know the stuff in the back is in worse condition than what I want. I don't need your help when I shop."

"Well, it's just, these items are _very_ expensive compared to the ones in the back," she said.

"Yeah," I hissed. "I'm aware of that. But I do have money, so just let me shop."

"Miss, please, just goes take a look in the back please." She said.

"Are you worried I'll scare away your customers? Is that it? I have money, just let me shop please," I said loudly. The few customers in the store now stared at me. I felt uncomfortable.

"Miss, I'll have to ask you to leave. We don't like _your kind_ in here…" a second woman said. Tears welled up in my eyes. I threw the few items I had found onto the ground and ran out of the store, stares following me. I ran into the small food store on the corner, running down the aisles quickly.

"Jim," I said when I saw him. He looked up and saw me crying.

"What's wrong Rose?" he asked, concerned. "Was it your-"

"I'm fine, I'm fine. I'm going back to your house, but you finish the shopping. Don't worry, I'm fine," I said, having trouble stringing a sentence together and running out the door. I ran the whole way there, stumbling blindly on the rocky dirt path that served as a poor-excuse for a street.

"Mrs. Hawkins," I cried when I was inside. She ran into the room. I was sitting on the couch, tears still streaming down my face.

"Rose, what's wrong? Was it your father again?" She asked, sounding angry. She sat next to me, wiping her wet hands on the bottom of her skirt.

"No, it wasn't him… I was in that clothing store, and the woman said that they didn't want _my kind_ in there. What the hell is that supposed to mean? My kind isn't allowed in the store," I asked, wiping away tears and trying to calm myself down. She looked stunned, shocked, and, like me, confused.

"I'm not sure honey… But don't you worry about that, we can sort this out later," she said, stroking my hair. "Come on, we'll go get dinner ready. That sounds good, right?"

"Um, I can't cook at all," I said softly, smiling.

"Well, you can set the table then," Mrs. Hawkins said. "Go wash up first honey, okay?" I nodded and quickly headed upstairs to the small bathroom. I looked in the mirror and saw a dirty face looking back. I splashed water on my face, scrubbing the dirt away. The swelling on my eye had gone down; it was still bruised, but already looked better. There was a knock on the door.

"I'll be out in a second, I'm just washing up," I said drying my hands. I walked out and down the hall.

"Boo!" Jim yelled, jumping out from a doorway, causing me to scream.

"What the he-!" I yelled, scared by Jim, and then lowered my voice so Mrs. Hawkins didn't hear me. "What the hell was that for!" Jim was laughing pretty hard, even though I was giving him my best glare I'd been able to muster in a few weeks for sure.

"You were scared," he teased.

"Well duh," I said, responding by punching his shoulder. "And you're dead if you do that again." He laughed at me, not taking me seriously. I ran down the stairs and into the kitchen. I took the plates and cups from the cabinet and set them on the table. "Where's the purp juice?"

"Bottom of the cabinet there," Mrs. Hawkins said pointing to a small shelf. I retrieved he small bottle and poured it into the small glasses. "Jim," Mrs. Hawkins called up the stairs, "come down, dinner's ready."

"One second Ma," he yelled. I sat down, scooping food onto my plate, and listened as Jim thundered down the stairs, jumping down the last few.

"Jim, I swear, when you go down those stairs it sounds like a herd of elephants is running through the place!" His mother exclaimed.

"Mmm, this looks good. Rose, you didn't cook I take it?" Jim teased yet again.

"Shut your face," I mumbled, stuffing a roll in my mouth. After the initial little fight, dinner was calm, which was a surprise for all of us.

"I gotta go now," I said grabbing my now clean cape off the wall. Mrs. Hawkins must have washed it for me; sometimes she treated me so much like I was the daughter she never had. Actually, she always did.

"You can stay the night dear," Mrs. Hawkins said. I could tell that she hoped I would. "We do have the couch set up for you after all. It'll be warm and safe, give you a chance to rest properly."

"Well, I should get home, my little bench might be missing me," I said, a smile on my face. She gave me a stern look. "But, I guess one more night away won't hurt anyone." I put the cape back and sat on the couch.

"Well, good night Rose," Mrs. Hawkins said, turning out the lights on her way upstairs.

"Good night," I called back to her. I sat down, and suddenly felt so tired. I drifted off to sleep quickly…


	4. Is it Me?

(A/N: Okay, here is the fourth chapter! Yay! So yeah... I love all of my reviewers! You guys all rock! Thanks to all of you! So yeah, the same thing goes for this one... Review and I'll put the next chapter up! We'll go for, uh, _nine_- that's only THREE more- reviews... And I like reviews... They make you feel fuzzy and happy inside! But I like getting ideas and stuff, like enocuragement and yeah... Review please, tell me what you think and I'll work on it!)

My Reviewer so far (Much love to you all! Keep it up!):

andd

Muriel Candytuft (Wow, three reviews from you, thanks times three!)

.bessie xD.

Jackie99

**Disclaimer: This is depressing because I have to keep repeating that I don't**** own Treasure Planet...**

Chapter 4

It was raining hard when I woke up. I grabbed my cape and quickly wrote a note. I tacked it on the door; it simply said I'd be at the Benbow at noon. Outside the streets and paths were muddy; I sank into several puddles before arriving in town.

"Everything is closed Miss," someone yelled from an entryway. "There's too much rain coming down, and many of 'em are flooding." I nodded in his direction, picking up my pace. I wasn't shopping today anyway.

"Thank you," I called back to him. I set off at a run, heading from the outskirts of the town to the industrial park, my home. I heard someone behind me, a shiver ran up my spine, and I saw the two Robo-Cops that had arrested Jim the other day. _What the hell do they want now?_ I knew I'd have to wait to head to the park, I wasn't supposed to be there anyway. I slowed when I felt a robot hand on my shoulder.

"What's going on boys?" I asked, wiping some of the rain from my face. I adjusted my hood. It just stood there; an eerie silence filled the air.

"You have to come with us," it said simply. The other one joined it and put its hand on my shoulder. I looked down and saw my feet dangling in midair; they were holding me under the armpits.

"Boys, I can walk," I said, "so let me." I struggled, but they started to roll along, then suddenly they flew and we were at the Benbow Inn. I was confused now, having done nothing wrong yet today or recently.

"Mrs. Hawkins," the first one said. This seemed a little too familiar… It got deathly silent in the inn. There was not crash as dishes fell, so I was pleased with that.

"Rose?" she asked surprised. I shrugged because I had no clue what was happening. _Just catching up on all those times they missed,_ I thought wryly. Luckily for me, they had no clue just how often I broke some simple laws.

"I didn't do anything wrong, they just picked me up," I said. Jim walked in and his mouth dropped. I was supposed to be pulling the "miracle turnaround," oops.

"What is going on here boys?" Mrs. Hawkins asked; she looked both annoyed and shocked with them. I mean, how often were they planning on arresting Jim and me? Apparently once you're bad, you can't breathe without breaking some sort of law.

"Mrs. Hawkins, this girl is in your charge, is that correct?" The first one said.

"No, she takes care of herself, I am her employer."

"Yeah, I take care of myself." One of the Robos whacked me over the head, causing me to see some stars. Jim lunged forward, but his mother held him back with an outstretched arm.

"What is wrong?" Mrs. Hawkins asked again.

"Subject 120382 is going to be arrested if she cannot keep to the good side of the law," the second one said.

"I have a name, it's Rose. And what the hell are you talking about? I've done absolutely nothing wrong!" I said, shocked and annoyed. I was hit on the head again and saw some more stars.

"This is a final warning for her," they said in unison, dropping me onto the hard, wood floor. The whole room had confused looks on their faces, probably the same one I had, except mine was a little pained from a fall I just had. They rolled out, hats once again lifting from their heads as if they were being polite.

"Mrs. Hawkins, what is going on with them?" I asked, scared for some reason. Maybe it was the fact I was being unjustly arrested and couldn't stop that. She shrugged, looking sorry for me. "Why are they doing this? What can I do?"

"You can avoid them without looking suspicious, and that's about all," she said serving the steaming meal she had in her hand. I looked at the clock, it wasn't even noon yet. On a typical day, I'd still be asleep on my cozy bench- thick bit of sarcasm right there.

"Can I start working yet?" I asked, not wanting to really.

"Aprons are in the back, and don't forget to punch in this time," she reminded me. I walked to the back slowly, grabbed my apron and headed out to work. I earned some looks from the customers, and I have to say, a few of them actually looked sympathetic.

"Rose, I think I might have left the dumpster open when I went out before. Can you go check it for me?" Mrs. Hawkins asked as I was leaving.

"Uh, sure, unless I'm gonna get arrested for it." I ran out the back door to the trash and closed the bin door. Walking back I climbed the trellises onto the roof and sat there.

"You're late," I said when the door opened.

"Sorry," Jim mumbled as he sat next to me.

"I got your note," I said holding it up.

"Apparently you did…" It was silent, and Jim looked serious. I could tell he was deep in thought, mulling something over. Instantly y brain started to buzz. "I'm leaving in a few days."

"_What_ are you talking about! Why are you leaving?" I asked jumping up. _Why does everyone leave me?_

"Because I'm a hassle here, to everyone; if I leave, it'll be better. I don't think my mom can't handle it if I get in trouble again, but neither can I." We sat in silence for a while; I fought the tears that were brimming at my eyes. I couldn't cry, not again.

"Where are you going?" He stood up and jumped off the roof. "Jim, I asked you something; where are you going off to!" I jumped off the roof after him.

"Follow me for a minute, I've gotta show you something." We ran to his house, Mrs. Hawkins wasn't home yet from the inn. Inside, we headed up to his room and he locked all the doors and closed the blinds.

"What's going on Jim? Just tell me where you're going," I said. He started digging through his drawers, tossing the contents on the floor, and retrieved a small gold sphere.

"Catch," he said throwing it to me. I caught it, it was heavier than I'd expected it would be, but not too heavy. Luckily, I didn't drop it. It looked a little fragile and I definitely didn't want to look like an idiot and drop it.

"What is it?" It was decorated with intricate little marks; circles and lines were scattered on it.

"A map, toss it here," he said. He caught it and spun it around, punching some of the dots in. It made a little noise, spun around, and the room was suddenly bathed in a map of what appeared to be the universe. "Here we are," he said pointing to a little planet. He touched it and the map began to move. He rattled off some names of galaxies and planets as they zoomed by. Then it stopped.

"Is that-?"

"It's Treasure Planet."

"But this is wrong then, Treasure Planet isn't real… Is it?"

"That's where I'm going, so it better be."

"How will you get there? You don't have a ship or anything." The map made some whirling noises and closed, the room no longer bathed in its light.

"Doctor Doppler sadly is coming with me, sadly. He's hiring it for a 'scientific expedition' of some sort. Only the captain- and whomever she trusts to tell- will know about it. We're leaving tomorrow morning actually. I knew I'd feel bad if I didn't say goodbye and tell you what was going on." There was another long, long period of silence.

"What's the name of the ship you're going to be sailing on?"

"Why all of these questions suddenly? I thought you were silent most of the time! I feel like I'm getting interrogated by Robo-Cops." He laughed softly, but answered me. "It's called the R.L.S. Legacy. It's got a good reputation in the sailing world I guess."

"Jim, I'm home! Why is this place so closed up? Come down here so we can talk, I wanna see my little boy before he leaves."

"Yeah Ma, give me a minute, I'm packing some stuff." He looked at me sadly, "I'll be right back," then ran down the stairs. I sat on his bed.

"Another person is leaving me, am I really all that bad?" I mumbled. Tears were welling up in my eyes. I held the map in my hand, I threw it down in the bed; I hated the stupid map. Jim was leaving me because of it- this stupid hunk of junk! I found a pad of faded paper littering the floor and searched for a pencil. Quickly I scribbled a note down on it.

"_Jim, I'll miss you while you're gone. So much for no teary good-byes… Stay safe, okay? Come back rich, I want something gold, okay? Is that too much to ask? I'll miss you more than you think… Don't do anything stupid… Good luck with it. That's a pretty far ways to go, and I don't want you to get lost. Stay out of trouble, those Robo-Cops could be anywhere. I'll try to stay out of prison too. I'll miss you… Love, Rose"_

I folded the paper and left it on Jim's bed, then jumped out of his bedroom window… I hated good-byes, but this one would be the worse- made even worse by the fact I was ready to cry. And right now I hated Jim for making me say good-bye to him; he was so stupid for doing this to me!

Review for more of the story... Love you all!


	5. Finding the Map

**(A/N: So I'm sorry. I've had a really, uh. hectic- understatement of the year- few weeks. And yeah, stuff happens I guess... But no excuses, sorry for the long wait. So I'm putting up TWO chapters tonight! Yay for me. But this will be known as "Hell Week" for school because I'm doing this. It's Thursday night and we don't have a few characters yet, lines, costumes, scenery, nothing really... But we have ticket sales, people ARE coming. Like I said, Hell Week. Marks close, so it's a cram to get some tests done in time for grading. It sucks alright... (Another understatement.) So this is a little different, the following chapter. Just a quick warning, I'm really sick and stuff doesn;t always make sense. (And my index finger is buddy taped to my middle finger because it was jammed in my damned locker- the locker from F hell! A bit hard to type ya' know.) Tell me any problems with this at all, I want it to be nearly perfect. "Nothing is perfect..." yadda yadda yadda... But review please. I want maybe five more reviews for this chapter, not asking much really! Thanks to my reviews! Love you all... Your names will be in a credits thing at the end of this thing. So give me some suggestions and such. Flame me, I don't care. Whatever. I'm all laidback and stuff, it doesn't matter. I won't cry, might cuss you out, but won't cry. Try me. Lol. Yeah, on with the story!)**

Disclaimer: None of this is mine, otherwise people would LOVE me more than they already do and would want to be me. And I'd be sorta rich. See, this isn't making me money, so obviously I don't own Treasure Planet. I'm not _that_ brilliant people!)

(Flashback for Jim)

"Jim, I don't know what to do with you anymore! I try to help you, but you don't want it. You're going down the wrong path. I don't want to see you end up like-" Sarah Hawkins stopped her lecture and stared into space for a moment, looking confused.

"Like who Mom?! Who don't you want me to be like? You don't want me to end up like _whom_? Like dad did? You don't want me to leave you… to walk out of your life… and hurt you… and abuse you? Is that is? Well I won't. But you still don't get it. I didn't do anything this time. I'm trying to be better, to turn around. It's harder than you think," Jim said. At first, his voice was loud, raised and irritated just because of the subject, but as he spoke, he calmed down, barely whispering. His mother had tears in her eyes. "I'm sorry mom," he said hugging her tightly.

There was a loud crash outside the door, like a crack of lightning and then something resembling nails of a chalkboard. With that was a bright flash of light outside the windows and the ground shook violently.

"Jim, stay away from the door!" Mrs. Hawkins yelled as Jim headed for the door. "Don't go out there!" Jim ignored her and exited the house. "Jim, you'd better get your butt back inside the house right now!"

(Jim's Point of View)

It looked normal outside, if only soaking wet because of the downpour that had begun twenty minutes ago, so I went out there, ignoring my mother yelling at me. I walked out back and saw a crash spaceship, flames licking the sky. Instinctively, and quite stupidly, I ran to the ship, pounding on the window. A claw hit the window and I jumped back, shocked after staring at flames for five minutes.

"Mom, get out here," I yelled. "Hey, is anyone in there?" I tried to open the door, but it was locked from the inside. Whoever was in there was probably dead already. I could feel the heat radiating from the inside of the spacecraft. Suddenly, with a hiss, the door opened and a turtle-like creature emerged.

"Me chest," it muttered. I thought it meant it was having a heart attack, but when a wooden chest appeared in front of me, I knew I had been mistaken. "Boy, get me… inside now. Me chest is unsafe."

"Mom, hurry, it's an emergency!" I yelled. If you've ever been faced with an emergency such as this, let me know how you handled it, because I just panicked. "Okay mister, I'll get you inside. Hold on to your chest and whatever. We'll take care of you ship later. Mom, get out here!" I pulled him up and slowly began to walk towards my house, balancing all of his weight on me made the walk ever slower. My mom appears at the door and nearly screams when she sees this big… lug hanging off my shoulder.

"Jim Hawkins-" she starts, but I cut her off.

"Mom, he's hurt bad, real bad. His ship crashed out back. We need to get him inside; he said something about his chest, a treasure chest." She tried to help me get him through the door, but it was easier to do this myself. His box fell in the middle of the carpet, and he mumbled something as I set him down in a chair. Mom went to pick up the chest, but the turtle creature lunged at him.

"It's me chest, git away from it! It belongs to me, git back from it!" He coughed loudly a few times, eyes rolling back in his head as he did so. It truly did gross me out.

"Okay buddy, listen here-" Mom started in her 'no nonsense voice,' but he cut her off.

"'E's a comin'. Can ye hear 'im? Those damned gears and gyros clickin' and whirrin' like the devil himself! 'E's after me chest. But 'e won't git it. He'll have to pry it from ol' Billy Bones's cold dead fingers!" With that, Billy Bones began to cough again.

"Calm down Bones, calm down," I said. I reached for the chest, but he ripped it away from me, holding it close. "Who's coming?"

"The cyborg; beware of the cyborg!" he reached up to me, pulling my ear closer, and whispered. He made one final hacking noise and then fell back, dead. My eyes were wide as yet another crash was heard outside my door. My mother opened the chest and retrieved a small golden orb.

"All that for this?" she said in a shocked voice. "I suppose boys will be boys and all but really-"

"Mom, come on!" A gunshot ripped through the door and I bolted up the stairs, pulling my mom after me. I held the orb tightly in my hand. _If this thing is so important, I don't want to lose it… especially before I know what it is. _There was a loud crash as some alien broke down the door and they started to ransack the place. I ran down the hall, to my room and grabbed the closest solar-surfer, jumping out the already open window.

"JIM!" my mom yelled as the ground rushed up at us. I was holding her tightly and felt like she was trying to pop my head off my shoulders. I started the solar-surfer and it roared to life, three feet from the ground. Looking back, out home was in flames; the Benbow was burning to the ground.

At Doctor Doppler's House

"All that- losing the Benbow, our home- just for this?" the doctor said. "It must hold some cryptic message or treasure." The three of us- me, the doctor, and my mom- all sat in the doctor's house. He was letting us stay with him until we had a home of our own. My mom was sitting in an oversized armchair crying, and I didn't really know what to do. The doctor left the sphere on the table, pacing the floor and mumbling to himself.

"Did they save anything?" Sarah asked. Doctor Doppler stopped pacing and shook his head solemnly, that being more than enough to make her burst into tears again.

"If only I could figure out what those strange markings on it mean though," he said, returning thought to the gold globe. "Well, it's certainly a lot of trouble over that odd little sphere. Those markings baffle me, unlike anything I've ever encountered. Even with my vast experience and superior intellect, it will take me to unlock its-" The room suddenly was filled with a whirling noise and the orb bathed the room with light. "Hey!" We all stared as the whole universe and more was mapped out in front of us in a pale greenish light. "Why it's a map! Wait, wait, this is us- the planet Montressor!" The doctor touched "us" and suddenly the map began to move; a yellow line connecting some of the planets now. He rattled off galaxies and planets and clouds and stuff, showing off. "Wait what's this, what's this?" The smaller planets began to disappear, along with the rest of the map; leaving just one single planet. "Why it's-"

"Treasure Planet," just like it looked in picture books. There it was, in the doctor's house.

"No," the doctor exclaimed in disbelief.

"That's Treasure Planet!" I repeated.

"Flint's Trove; the loot of a thousand worlds?!" the doctor said in shock. "You know what this means?

"It means that all that treasure is only a boat ride away!"

"Whoever brings it back would hold an eternal place upon the pantheon of explorers. He'd be able to experience-" I cut him off by closing the map, the soft green glow disappearing from the room. The doctor appeared a little stunned, "Oh, what just happened?!" He stood baffled, scratching his head trying to figure out what I'd done. For an extremely smart doctor, he was fairly simple at times. And lately, I'd noticed those times were growing more and more frequent.

"Mom, do you realize what this means? This is the answer to all of our problems!" I said to my mother who had remained silent during the whole conversation so far. She was probably still in shock that the Benbow Inn was gone, and we had sprung the discovery of Treasure Planet upon her.

"Jim there is absolutely no way-" she began to argue, so I had to cut her off. She had to see this my way.

"Don't you remember all those stories?"

"That's all they were- stories!" She wasn't seeing this my way. Moms are so stubborn at times!

"But with that treasure, we could rebuild the Benbow a hundred times over!"

"Well this is just, whoa, just, uh… Delbert! Will you please explain how ridiculous this is?" My mother said, thinking she'd won already.

"It's totally preposterous; traversing the entire galaxy alone!" the doctor said in his "scientific voice." I rolled my eyes in near-defeat.

"Now at last we hear some sense!" my mother said smugly.

"That's why I'm going with you!" he exclaimed, grabbing a small bag and shoving his belongings into it.

"Delbert!" my mother said in shock.

"I'll use my savings to finance the expedition; commission a ship; hire a captain and a crew!" He gathered his traveling bag hastily as he spoke.

"You're not serious, are you?" my mother said, still shocked. I was shocked as well; the doctor doing something this drastic, nevertheless _volunteering_ to do it _and_ pay for everything?!

"All my life I've been waiting for an opportunity like this and here it is screaming at me: go Delbert, go Delbert!" He said, sliding down an enormous stack of scientific books he'd probably never read. I suspected half of the books were just for show, and the other half he'd never get a chance to read.

"Okay, okay, you're both grounded!" Sarah said exasperatedly. She gave the two of us frustrated looks. _Alright,_ I thought,_ time for drastic measures._

"Mom, look," I paused, thinking how to say this right. I had one chance at changing her mind, and this was it. There was no time for messing up anymore. "I know that I keep messing everything up, and I know that… that I let you down. But this is my chance to make it up to you. I'm gonna set things right." She had this proud look in her eyes and I sensed that I was sort of winning her over.

"Um, Sarah," Doctor Doppler said, diverting her attention. He waved her over, "if I may." They huddled and talked in whispers. "You said yourself that you've tried everything. There are much worse remedies than a few character building months in space."

"Are you saying this because it is the right thing or because _you_ really want to go?" she questioned.

"Because I _really, really, really_ want to go," he said with, uh, puppy eyes. "And it's the right thing." She walked back to me with defeated look on her face, sighing heavily.

"Jim, I don't wanna lose you," she said sadly.

"Mom, you won't," I reassured her, holding her hands. "I'll make you proud."

"Well, uh, there we are then," the doctor said, clapping his hands together. He headed over to the large bay window, and made a sweeping gesture. "We'll begin preparations are once! Jim my boy, soon we'll be off to the spaceport!"

**(A/N: Review! If you do, you get a cyber dollar! Yes, for a limited time only, you'll get a cyber dollar! What a deal. And I'll return the favor!)**


	6. The RLS Legacy

**(Told you I'd put up two! It's compensation! Go me. I'm just doing this because I have nothing else for this story and figure I'll do this now so I don't stall or anything. Review, flame, whatever. Do your worst! Lol... Have fun! Read on... To inifity and beyond...! Sorry, that was so random! Coming from me, it wasn't but it might be. Just read the story and review please! I'll send cyber candy to whoever does...)**

Chapter 6- Jim's Point of View

Going on the R.L.S. Legacy meant freedom for me, a freedom I'd never known. It also meant leaving behind everything important to me: Montressor, mom, the old Benbow, Rose…

Only God knew how much I actually love that girl. And the day before I left, she disappeared without a good-bye; except that damn note. I think she's what I'll miss the most.

"Jim, oh Jim," Doctor Doppler called. He was wearing this ridiculous space suit; why? He was an embarrassment. The worst thing about it: he was wearing the suit wrong, it wasn't even plugged it. I didn't have the heart to tell him. "Jim, I think I found the Legacy!" I turned and found him in the crowd.

"Yeah doctor, I heard you the first time," I said. That's when I got my first look at the R.L.S Legacy. I was actually amazed with her- the ship I mean.

"Let's go aboard Jim! We'll be leaving in a little while and we best get to know the lay of the boat!"

"This is a fine ship, Doctor Doppler," a booming voice called. "I best not hear ya' call her a boat again!" The doctor cringed at his own mistake. The two of us walked up the gangplank and met the owner of the booming voice. He looked to be chiseled of stone.

"And who are you my fine sir? I'm guessing the captain?" the doctor asked. The man laughed deeply.

"I'm Mr. Arrow sir, but I'm the first-mate. The captain is aloft." I looked up, following his gaze through the riggings. I saw a feline-like creature flipping through the lines and sails as if they were there for such a purpose. _An acrobatic, feline, feminine captain,_ I thought with a smirk on my face. _What a treat this will prove to be…_ She landed without a sound on the deck in front of me and the captain. She brushed herself off and then stood straight up, looking rather professional.

"Ah, yes, hello doctor! Can you hear me?" she asked talking very loudly. She tapped his helmet.

"Why, yes I can hear you perfectly fine ma'am!" he said with a smile. She continued to tap his helmet.

"Hello doctor, can you hear me?" He removed the helmet quickly, receiving a tap to the head.

"I CAN HEAR YOU!" he yelled. She smiled, knowing he could all along.

"I am the captain of this ship, as my first mate, Mr. Arrow seems to have informed you. My name is Amelia; but you will address me as captain or ma'am at all times." She stared about the ship, and then her deadly gaze landed on me. "You must be Mr. Hawkins. You do have the, um, _required papers_, right?" she asked, talking quickly in a hushed voice. I nodded once. "Splendid! Now, let's go to my cabin and sort this all out." She walked off and two other people and I followed.

Her office was plain, too empty to seem like it was ever really used. There was a messy bed in one corner, a neat desk, and pictures and maps from around the galaxies. It wasn't too amazing to me. I think my room was more exciting than this could ever be.

"Mr. Hawkins; lets see this map of yours before we embark on this utterly useless voyage," Amelia said. She was rubbing her hands together with an excited look on her face that made me think her opinion on this trip was quite different than she had stated. I took out the small sphere and tossed it to her. She tried to open it, but became frustrated and tossed it back to me. "I don't usually need help with this sort of thing, but since you already know how to work this map, I'll let you." I held it, staring at the intricate design for the hundredth time since finding it.

"Jim," the doctor said giving me a stern look, "why don't you open it up?" I pushed in some of the dots, it spun and whirled to life; seconds later the room was bathed in the cool light of the map, th galaxy lain out before us.

"Wow," the captain said softly. I reached out and touched the spaceport and the map began to move quickly. Then, as it approached Treasure Planet, I closed the map. Everyone gave me sharp looks.

"People might be watching the room," I explained. The doctor and captain nodded approvingly.

"Capt'n," Mr. Arrow said opening a safe. She took the sphere from my hands and tossed it to Mr. Arrow who locked it away.

"You are not to touch, talk about, or even think of that map until we land. Is that clear to you all?" Amelia said. I nodded my head. "Now Jim, you are to be the cabin boy working for the cook. Go down to the galley right now and get to work; we don't let anyone on this ship and not make them work for their keep."

"Cabin boy, but I found the map! Without me, this wouldn't be happening!" Can you say I was a little mad? I didn't like to think I was being reduced to the ranks of _cabin boy_ after discovering the map responsible for this damn mission. Without me and my map, well, then we'd not be here.

"Mr. Hawkins, I gave you an order. Now get down to the galley before I decide you're to sit in the prison hold until we reach the God-forsaken planet!" Can you say she overreacted? She took a deep breath and closed her eyes for a moment, then continued in a calm voice. "You are to assist the cook and the other cabin boy."

"What about me?" The doctor asked. I was wondering what he expected really.

"Do whatever it is you want, as long as you aren't in the way of my crew or me. If you are in the way, then consider yourself in the kitchens working as well," Amelia replied stoically. She was smiling to herself, even I could see that. "Is that clear?"

"Yeah captain," I said through clenched teeth. I was furious over her treatment towards the doctor and myself, treating us like slaves or worthless junk she could boss around. Who did she think she was?! Well, obviously the captain, but my point is… Never mind, I guess, I'm just venting.

Mr. Arrow led us down to the galley; the captain and I complained back and forth the whole way.

"Ye won't disrespect the captain while I'm around to hear it! There be no finer captain in this here or any galaxy and I won't stand to hear you say anything dirty about her!" Arrow said. There was obviously at least _one_ person on this ship who didn't despise the overly strict captain. Just then, I was aware of loud singing in the galley below us. We finished walking down the dusty, dark steps and I had my first look at the man I'd be working for during this little voyage across several galaxies.

_A cyborg on the ship! That creature- Billy Bones- was hiding the map from a cyborg… How many can there be in one galaxy, let alone two in only a few days? If this was the same one, on the same ship as the very map Billy had died trying to save- it could mean trouble. I'll have to watch him very closely the entire voyage._

"Why Mr. Arrow sir, bringing such fine gents into me humble galley! If I had known, I'd have tucked in my shirt." the cyborg said with a throaty laugh.

"May I introduce Doctor Doppler, the financier of this voyage," Mr. Arrow said as Delbert stepped forward.

"Love the outfit doctor," the cyborg said as his laser eye zoomed over the doctor's outfit.

"Well, um, uh, thank you; love the eye," the doctor replied sheepishly. "Uh, this young lad is Jim Hawkins." He pushed me forward against my will. I couldn't help but shoot him a dirty look.

"Jimbo," the cyborg said, stepping forward and sticking out his mechanical hand. Instead of his metal fingers though, he extended several knives, acting as if it was a mistake. I'll bet it wasn't. He quickly switched to his normal hand and offered it for me to shake. I just glared at his too-happy smile. "Aw, don't be put off by this hunk of hardware." He then proceeded to cut up various foods with his mechanical hand. "Whoa," he said, faking slicing his hand off. "These gears take a bit o' gettin' used to, but come in mighty handy from time to time." He thus went on, slicing and dicing, and then lighting a quick fire for them to cook over. It all went in a big pot and he seasoned it and everything. "Here now, have some cups o' me famous bonzabeast stew." He handed a bowl to the doctor and me. The doctor hesitantly lapped some up.

"Mmm, delightfully tangy, yet robust," he slurped some more up.

"It's an old family recipe," the cyborg said. An eyeball suddenly popped up from the stew.

"Ah," the doctor screamed, almost fumbling and dropping the bowl. The cyborg began to laugh.

"In fact, that was part of me old family!" He laughed heartily and ate the eyeball. "Just kiddin' doc; aw, but if I ain't a kidder. C'mon Jimbo and have a swig." He nudged me as I picked up the spoon to try the stew. Just as I was about to try the spoon, it began to wiggle in my fingers, turning pick as the stew disappeared. Suddenly it morphed and turned into a little pink blob that kept squeaking playfully and wagging a "tail" as if it was a little dog.

"Whoa," was all I said to show my shock.

"Morph, so that's where ye was hiding!" the cyborg said. "You little pink blob o' mischief." It dove into my bowl, splashing it slightly, and drank the rest of it down, burping in content when it was down.

"Whoa, what is that thing?" I asked as it brushed up against my cheek.

"What is that thing?" it mimicked, morphing into me.

"Why, it's… it's a morph. I rescued the little shape shifter off o' Protius I. We've been together since," he said. The little blob began to nuzzle with the cyborg and he began talking to it. A bell rang in the background.

"We're about to get underway. Would you like to observe the launch doctor?" Mr. Arrow asked.

"Would I?!" the doctor asked in excitement. "Does an active galactic nucleus have superluminal jets?" It was silent for a moment. "I'll follow you."

"Mr. Hawkins will stay here in your charge, Mr. Silver." Silver almost began to choke on his stew. I'm not sure if that would have been a good thing or not, but definitely a show.

"Begging your pardon sir-"

"Captain's orders; see to it that the new cabin boy is kept busy." Mr. Arrow said, cutting off Silver. He didn't seem to tolerate nonsense at all. The doctor disappeared with a sorry glance over his shoulder, leaving me with the cyborg.

"So," Silver said to break the silence. "Another one of ye little worms to be under me charge, eh? This'll prove to be rather interesting."

"Whatever," I said, retrieving a purp from the large barrel and eating it slowly. I was assuming the lavish meals would be reserved for the higher ranked people on the ship, not the cabin boy.

"Where's me other cabin boy? Blast it; I can barely control one, never even mind a second! Cabin boy, git your sorry bum in here now! Can't even remember the other's name; ridiculous o' the captain to assign me any help. I handled it all by myself before; I can surely do it now! They think I'm getting' too old for this job, but I'm more able than ye young twits!" I let him ramble, nodding my head to seem like I was listening; in one ear, out the other. "So I best give you some work I guess."

"You don't have to really," I said. If these guys thought he needed help, maybe he had a screw or two loose after all. That'd be a definite plus on my part. I was just along to get rich, not work.

"I think I should though. The captain and crew count on me for the food, you should do work as well. If you're here, you need to earn your keep," he said with a glare. The bell went off once again and the noise of feet above head grew more and more frantic as last second arrangements were made and the ship was prepared for launch.

"But-" I was about to argue I'd found the map, but remembered that it was a secret. You never know who's working the other side, and I wasn't ready to trust this particular cyborg.

"Well, I guess ye can watch the launch and git to work after that. There'll be plenty o' time for working later on in the voyage… plenty o' time for sure." I smiled; maybe I could trust him a bit. I bounded up the steps, almost running right into someone I hadn't expected to see.

"Hey there Jim; working hard already I see?" Rose said with a broad smile. If I was smiling at the prospect of putting off work, seeing Rose almost made me burst. We hugged quickly, clearing the top of the stairs so people would stop giving us dirty looks.

"What are you doing here?" I asked. She smiled evilly.

"I enlisted as a cabin boy on a voyage, and luckily for the two of us, got a job working here! Ain't that just great! I had hoped to get picked, maybe see you out here, but when I saw the name of the ship I'd be on, I was stunned. Talk about luck right?!" she talked a mile a minute, but years of practice helped me keep up.

"It's definitely lucky," I said as the ship began to take off from the spaceport.

We watched from the top of the mainmast as home grew smaller quickly. This would prove to be a real whirlwind adventure, especially since none of us really knew what it would hold.

**(HAPPY HALLOWEEN EVERYONE! EAT CANDY AND GET FAT! LOL, DON'T TAKE THE POISONED STUFF THOUGH! MAKE YOUR FRIENDS EAT THE STUFF YOU THINK MIGHT BE POISONED, WORKS FOR ME! ENOJY, TRICK OR TREAT! HAPPY HALLOWEEN!)**


	7. Getting on the RLS Legacy

**(A/N: I find this really short. But that's okay. This goes back in time. People made requests, but I had this chapter planned out already. Sorry it's short, but I'm _so_ busy with homework and sports. And my laptop keeps kicking me off the internet. This is the third time tonight I've thired to upload this. I hope it works...  
****So please review people. I have a feeling I'm writing for no one! Tell me something, anything! How's my grammar? Any ideas? Thoughts? Questions? Opinions? Anything?! I'll update A.S.A.P. (That's "As Soon As Possible" I thought everyone know that, but apparently not.) So give me some sort of review; anything. You'll get a cyber-hundred-dollar-bill! Returning reviewers get a little more though... We'll say FOUR-hundred cyber-hundred-dollar-bills. You keep rocking you guys!)**

**Disclaimer: Treasure Planet is the work of geniuses. Obviously not me because I guess this apparently sucks because of the lack of reviews...**

Chapter Seven  
Rose's Point of View

_I can't lose Jim. I just can't lose another person in my life. If he leaves now, he'll never even know how I really like him. I need to tell him; if there was a way for me to… No, it'll never work. But, I wonder if…_

I hit the ground running, leaving Jim's bedroom window behind me. The glowing light being emitted from his house grew dimmer slowly. I reached a large tree and climbed into it, retrieving my hidden treasure- the solar-surfer I'd broken. I'd had it fixed today and was going to return it to Jim, but now I had other ideas for it…

"This is such a stupid idea," I muttered to myself as I dropped from the tree and kick started the solar-surfer in midair, rocketing away.

The next morning I woke up and stretched my stiff, aching back. I crawled out from where I'd slept in a small, dry space under some stairs. Sure, it was cramped, but when it was pouring outside, I was grateful to be dry.

I stood and brushed the dirt off my clothes. People who were bustling around were giving me some very, very odd looks. I mean, I'm not _that_ weird looking. Maybe I was a little strange, but not enough to gather a little audience.

_Is there some ordinance saying I can't sleep under the stairs?_ I thought. Maybe that was the reason for the weird looks. I'll never know though. I grabbed the hidden solar-surfer and headed through the spaceport.

I could hardly believe that in only an hour I'd managed to, uh, _buy my way_ onto a trade ship heading from Montressor to Minotross, with one stop at the spaceport that night. Yeah, I was sure lucky that I could sneak into the cargo hold and escape unseen.

_For once I had some luck_, I thought as I climbed the gangplank up to the shiny deck of a bustling ship. I carried the solar-surfer at my side, and I was wearing my only clothes.

"What be your business aboard the R.L.S. Legacy, miss?" a booming voice asked. I spun around in shock and was suddenly face to, uh, chest with a large, stone-like man. He was, literally, carved out of stone.

"I, uh, I wanted, uh-" I stuttered having not rehearsed what I wanted to happen really.

"If ye have no business here, then I suggest you hurry off. If the captain was to see you aboard with no business or papers, you'd surely have a bad day," he said. He didn't hesitate to give me a little push towards the gangplank. I planted a foot and turned to face him again.

"Sir, I'd like to speak with the captain. I want to uh, talk privately with him," I said. He smirked at me. _A good or bad sign,_ I wondered.

"I'll get _her_ right away for you," he said, turning to march off. By now, the bust crew was sending me looks constantly. Some of them were scaring me, and I had to fight the urge to squirm out of the way. One caught my interest, and not in a good way. He was a bug-like creature, although what kind I had no idea. I'm not as up to the names of alien creatures as I should be. I must have missed all those lessons in school because frankly, I don't care to remember. I go by looks.

And this one was freaky. As I was saying, he had to be almost seven feet tall even with his hunched posture. He reminded me of a bug, and I was even more certain he was an actual bug as I watched him. He had claws that looked rather sharp and deadly. I didn't like the look he was giving me. Even from a hundred or so yards away I could see myself reflected in his ugly yellow eyes.

"Mind your own busssssinesssss," he said in a hiss. Okay, so a mix between a bug, snake, and something with claws. He was giving me a glare, and I returned it.

"Gladly if that means being away from the likes of you," I said under my breath. His eyes flashed with what I took as anger, but I doubt he heard me.

"Miss, the captain will see you now," the stone-man said upon returning. I looked up at him and followed him to the spacious captain's cabin. The feline-like woman sat behind a desk, charting what I presumed to be the course. _She'll get along great with the doctor_, I thought wryly.

"What do you want?" she asked, not looking up. The stone-man pushed me down into a chair and I dropped my things onto the ground.

"I was wondering if you had any, um, spots open. For me to work I mean," I said, wanting to flinch under her gaze as well. She stared at me, almost seeming to look through me. I grabbed onto my solar-surfer and stood. "Thanks anyway," I mumbled.

"Wait, miss, sit back down. Let's discuss the terms you are to work under," she said. I sat down and smiled. "What is your name?"

"My name is Rose. So, do I get a job?" I was excited. So far, Plan A was going perfectly.

"We'll have to see," she said slowly. "Now, what can you do?"

"I can…" I was stumped. What did she want to know; my previous jobs, what I _could_ do for her? What I was willing to do? I thought it over slowly and was sure to speak confidently. "Well, back home, I worked at an inn. I was a waitress, but on a few occasions stood in as a cook. And I helped build a house once. I'm not sure what you want to know. Could you please be more specific?"

"You did just fine. Now, where did you previous live; and why did you leave?" I felt just like I was being interrogated once again.

"I lived on Montressor. I left because…" I paused here, probably not a good idea because her eyes seemed to bore holes through me. "I left because I had nothing there. Everything- and everyone- I ever had… left me. Everything that mattered to me was gone. I just wanted out after they left me. I want to see the universe." She returned to the charts, connecting lines and measuring between planets I didn't know.

"I am Captain Amelia. Late of a few run-ins with the Procyon Armada, nasty business, but I won't bother to bore you with my scars. You will address me as ma'am or captain at all times, understood? You've met my first officer Mr. Arrow. He's sterling, tough, dependable, honest, brave, and true."

"Oh please captain," Mr. Arrow said with a pleased look on his face.

"Oh, shut up Arrow. You know I don't mean a word of it," she said nonchalantly with a wave of her hand. I took it this was a joke heard several times judging by the jovial smiles on both faces. "Arrow, bring her to the galley. She'll be working as a cabin boy."

"Don't you mean cabin _girl_?" I asked. I almost bit my tongue or slapped myself, realizing I should've just kept my mouth shut. Would she be mad at that comment? Was it something she'd find disrespectful? Would that comment cost me the job I might just get aboard the R.L.S. Legacy? She didn't look mad at me and my comment, but you never know. Captain Amelia just might not show her emotions out on her sleeve.

"Bring the cabin girl downstairs. She's to work for the cook doing whatever he says. Do the both of you understand?"

"Yes ma'am," the two of us said simultaneously. Mr. Arrow then led me out across the deck to the galley where I was to work.

_Hopefully you get here soon Jim,_ I thought as I heard whistling and singing coming up from the stairs…

**(A/N: REVIEW and I'll do the same for you!**

**Question One: Too short, just right? Question Two: Spelling or grammar mistakes?)**


	8. A Fun First Day

**(A/N: Okay, I'm back... Good thing too... maybe, as long as some mob doesn't come along and kill me. I'm so sorry about not updating this story sooner... There's a quick explanation in my profile about it. And trust me, there's _a lot_ more to it. There always is. But, here is the long awaited (maybe not) chapter eight. Of course, I'll expect murderous reviews most likely. Personal Message me if you've got something to say about being so late. And I know it's a little short, but don't worry, I'll try updating sooner... I mean it. Thank you all so much for the reviews... And be sure to keep it up!)**

**Disclaimer: Treasure Planet... Sadly, it isn't mine. (Sigh with me everyone...)**

Did I know I was going to see Jim on the ship? Yes. Was I still totally excited and practically ready to yell at him when I saw him the first time? Yes! Could I believe that we were both going to be working in the galley for Silver? No. Was I happy over that? Yes!

When I saw Jim on the ship, I hid at first. I didn't know what he'd say if he saw me. Would he be mad and decide against going on this mission? When the ship was about to set sail though, I ran down to the galley to see him, ecstatic we would be together. I almost ran into him, almost knocking him down the stairs. What a welcome that would be!

He bought my story that I didn't sign up to be on this ship, but just wanted some work. Or he appeared to. I don't know what I would've said if he didn't believe me. Maybe I would've come clean, but probably not.

"Rose and Jim, come here and get to work," Silver yelled as soon as the port was out of sight. Captain Amelia was standing nearby, so I would assume _she_ wanted us to work, not Silver. The two of us slowly made our way out of the rigging and to where Silver was standing.

"Jimbo, I got some new friends for you to meet…" Silver said. There was a long pause. "Look enthusiastic boy, its Mr. Mop and Mrs. Bucket!" Then Silver laughed, the two of us were silent.

"Yippee," Jim mumbled, and then began to clean.

"Rose, you'll be cleaning the kitchen up, I don't wanna see a single pot or pan to go unclean." Silver didn't have to do any work, which would explain his happiness. I did have to work, so that would explain my total unenthusiastic view. I rolled my eyes and headed down the stairs to the galley. Already I could imagine the piles and piles of dishes and pots and pans and cooking utensils and cups and mugs and other things I would have to wash. I groaned as I ducked my head under the doorway.

Do you know how long it takes to wash dishes? Do you know how long it takes if you need to wash over a hundred dirty plates on top of everything else? It is no picnic at all. I'd rather be cleaning the deck with Jim. And Morph was out there, not with me. In just a day I'd grown attached to the little guy, but it seemed to like Jim more.

Anyway, almost seven hours later, I finished washing all the dishes and stuff. My hands were red and raw from scrubbing with hot water, and my fingers looked like prunes. And my back hurt from being bent over a tub of water the whole time. Oh yeah, this would take some getting used to.

When I finished, I went off to look for Silver… okay, not look for. I actually planned to avoid him. I had to search the ship a little, find a spot I could hide in and get to know it. After all, this would be my home for a while.

I expected to look around unnoticed, without any problems at all. No, that will never, ever happen. I hadn't walked two feet from the top of the stairs when I saw Jim. Okay, that isn't a biggie. The problem you may ask? He was being pushed up against a pole by… you guessed it, my buddy the bug creep. A small group of the crew, all ugly and nonhuman, were cheering the bug on.

"Squash him," one said, punching its fist.

"Hey," I yelled before I knew what I was doing. What was I doing, you may ask? I was running at the bug guy, and lunged at his neck, hanging off its back. "Get off of him," I growled, tightening my grip on his throat. Well, it worked… for Jim. The bug dropped Jim roughly and somehow managed to swing me over his back and pin me on the pole. I didn't even know what was happening until I realized I couldn't breathe.

"You'll mind you own busssssinesssss from now on, won't you?" it hissed. I would have coughed at his putrid breath, but I didn't have any to spare. Out of the corner of my eye I could see Jim beating the bug, but its grip tightened and it all grew dark…

Air suddenly rushed to my lungs. It was painful, but so refreshing. My hand flew to my throat; the bug's claw was no longer there. It was definitely bruised and sore though. And I wasn't being held against the pole either; I was sitting on the ground, leaning against the pole. A much better position if you ask me. I looked up to see the bug looming over me, along with Silver. Did I ever mention that I love Silver? Well, now I do… Okay, that's on overstatement, I slightly like him. He was holding the bug's claw in a vice grip, twisting it the wrong way and squeezing it tightly. Jim was standing off to the side, absorbing the whole scene.

"There'll be no fighting on this ship while I'm around to hear of it," a booming voice said. My head whipped around to see Mr. Arrow heading towards us. _Ow, obviously no quick turning of the head for a while,_ I thought wryly and rubbed the sore bruise. Silver let go of the bug and everyone straightened up rather quickly. I stood slowly, aware many eyes were on me at that moment. And I didn't say pairs of eyes because some creatures onboard had several eyes. I stared contently at my shoes. I was dizzy from the effort of standing up.

"Aye Mr. Sir," Silver began, "there's no fighting here sir, just a slight misunderstanding, sir."

"Is that so? Mr. Scroop, what do you have to say about that?" Arrow asked. So the bug has a name, eh? How interesting. It was silent. "There is to be no more fighting amongst any of ye or you'll be tossed in the brig! Do I make myself clear Mr. Scroop?"

"Transparently," Scroop said with an evil glint in his eye.

"Now, back to work with the lot of ya'," Arrow ordered. "No dillydallying!" Everyone continued with what they were doing. I stood, still holding my neck. Jim sent a look my way, but I couldn't tell what it was supposed to mean. Was he mad with me, sad, sorry, or happy?

"Rose, Jim, both of ye are to report to the galley _now!_" I continued walking towards the stairs, not really in the mood to hurry. I still felt dizzy.

"What was that stunt you were pulling out there?" Silver asked before I even had a chance to sit in the chair next to Jim. Silver was standing to the side, near a barrel of purps. "The two o' ye could've gotten in big trouble," he said, reaching into the barrel of purps. "You know what happens when you squeeze a purp real hard missy?" At that point, he squeezed the purp until juice squirted from it. "That's what was going to happen to your head if I hadn't gotten there when I had! And you boy, strangling him won't do any good. Stay away from the others on this ship. Many cannot be trusted. I won't stand to have ye taken away to the brig. 'Tis a foul place to stay during a journey. And who knows how long you'd be stuck down there. I wouldn't be shocked if ye were forgotten."

"Don't worry, I can handle myself just fine," I told Silver. Silver and Jim stared at me. "What, it was all just a fluke. In any fair fight, I'd beat that wanna be in about ten seconds flat… easily."

"That may be so… but that ain't any incentive for him to fight fair, now is it?" Silver asked. So far, Jim had been silent. "And as for you Jimbo, I'd watch your own back as well as Rose's."

"I don't need to be babysat," I protested. Both of them stared at me. I rolled my eyes and stared at the ceiling, feeling stubborn.

"Ah, both of ye get to bed. There'll be plenty of work for you tomorrow. And, of course, now I'll have to work you even harder so as ye stay out of trouble…" the Silver left, whistling a tune to himself.

It was silent then. I'm not sure if I was mad at Jim or not… or why I would be mad to begin with. Maybe he was mad at me.

"You almost died," Jim said bluntly. I nodded my head.

"I sort of knew that already," I retorted. I removed my hand from my neck… I hadn't even noticed that I was touching it again. Jim was glaring at me.

"Listen I only meant-"

"No, you listen to _me_; I'm going to bed now. I'm extremely tired right now; working will do that to you. But, you wouldn't know that because you were making friends with Scroop," I said. Morph suddenly attacked me, flying out of the cupboard at high speed and colliding with my cheek. Instantly, he morphed into a miniature image of Scroop and began yelling at me. "I'll see you in the morning."

Well, that certainly answered my question. I was mad at him, and Jim was a bumbling fool. I wouldn't normally believe I could make an enemy so fast, but with Jim's help, it was much easier. Boys… they can be such trouble for a girl… especially when that girl is always saving that boy's lame butt from trouble.

**REVIEW PLEASE! If you liked it or hated it, dispised it or loved it, let me know. Just say more than two words. I like long reviews... Thank you everyone... More reviews sooner updates (I hope)...**

**(A/N 2: I'm pretty sure I'm better now, so I'll try harder!)**


	9. Working Hard

**(A/N: Yay, another chapter. This wasn't a horribly long wait, was it? I'm sorry if it was. I lead a very busy life. And I finally got my cast off! It was on since December 27, I had an operation during Christmas break. What a nice present, right?! Oh yeah, I changed my screen name! It is after a U2 song (my favorite band) of the same name.**

**So right; the chapter, this is chapter nine. Its short compared to what I usually do, so sorry. But it got the point across, right? Chapter ten will be longer, I promise. I have a trillion ideas. Review please!)**

**Disclaimer: I give up. I don't own it. I don't own it! Yeah, I don't own it… yet.**

I hate it when you wake up in the morning and have absolutely no idea where you are. That happens very frequently to me because I never know where I'm going to be or where I'll wake up.

This particular morning I woke up with my face about six inches from Jim's face. And I had drool on my face. Now, I realize Jim is a good looking boy and all, and that waking up near a guy you like it great, but on this particular morning, it wasn't. In fact, I fell out of my cloth hammock and hit the ground with a loud, painful thud. At least no one woke up. I pulled my hair into a ponytail and pulled my boots on after rubbing my numb toes back to life.

Then Morph appeared and began to lick my face like there was no tomorrow. I looked on the bright side; at least my face was getting washed. I wasn't sure how clean Morph was, but something told me the little pink blob couldn't be that dirty.

"Okay Morph, back off," I said in a hushed voice. "We can go get some breakfast and then play." Morph squeaked and zoomed off, making little chirping noises as he went along.

I quickly hurried up the stairs and looked out at the rest of the universe. It was cold, so I hurried down to the galley. Silver was down there, whistling happily as he cooked.

"Need some help with anything?" I asked as I ate a small, juicy purp from the barrel. I sat on a stool and leaned my elbows on a counter.

"Once the day starts I will need help; you just eat and be ready to work hard," Silver said. He slid a bowl of something like porridge over to me and I began to eat it greedily. Morph reappeared and began eat from my bowl as I did, chirping and squeaking happily.

"Mr. Silver, inform your cabin boy to stay out of the riggings," Arrow said as he entered the galley. I headed over to a big tub and began to wash out my bowl. Morph ate soap bubbles as they floated by.

"That I will," Silver said as he wiped his hands on the apron he was removing. Silver quickly disappeared up the stairs along with Mr. Arrow.

"Someone's in trouble; and it isn't me," I said in a singsong voice. Morph chirped and began to mimic Silver as he yelled at Jim.

"Jimbo get your backside down to the galley and git to work. How dare ye slack off when there's work to be done. Go on, git moving," Silver said. I quickly grabbed a knife and finished peeling some potatoes for the stew silver was making. I had to hide my smile once I heard Jimbo coming down the stairs.

"Jimbo's backside, Jimbo's backside, Jimbo's-" Morph was repeating merrily. I grabbed the little guy to cut him off, but he suddenly turned into little bubbles, and once reassembled, started growling at me. I growled back.

"So I should follow Rose's example and bark at Morph when I should be working? Okay," Jim said. He sat in the stool I had been sitting on and stole my pile of potatoes. I glared at him. Then he began to bark.

"I wasn't _barking_," I told him seriously. "I was growling; there's a difference, _Jimbo_."

"Now stop, I told ye last night there'd be no fighting between you! Jim, you'll be with me today and I'm gonna teach you some things you'll need to know about the ship. We might even get a chance to take a scuttle ship out and I'll teach the various knots you'll need to know. Rose, you'll be cooking and cleaning. We'll all serve the breakfast and then get to work, okay?" Silver said as he began spooning out bowls of porridge and sliced purps.

"No," I said, slamming my fist down. "That's sexist. Take the boy out to do the "man's work," and leave the girl to the kitchen! That's not fair!" Silver and Jim stared at me with open mouths. "I can see your tonsils." Both of them closed their mouths quickly.

"Well then… um, we can change rolls. Jim, would you mind staying here for the day?" Silver asked.

"Whatever," Jim shrugged. Jim wasn't a morning person at all.

"Then it's final. Rose, you'll have to come and work with me. Jim, you stay in the kitchen," Silver said.

And so, my day began. It was long and tired me out. By the end of the day, my head throbbed, my muscles ached, and I was falling asleep. But I didn't let it show.

I learned a lot from Silver. I also learned that Jim is a good cook even away from the Benbow Inn. Silver taught me how to steer a scuttle ship. Then he taught me how to tie knots, and, after that fun was over, made me work. I had to mop the decks again, and then had to peel a barnacle-like sucker off the ship. That's what took all of my energy. I started to count how many I ripped off the ship's hull alone after seventy-four. There had to have been a million or so on the rest of the ship. It was hard work.

But I don't regret making Jim do the "women's work" in the kitchen. Morph must have flitted back between the two of us. For most of the day, he hung around my shoulder, chirping in my ear. A few times he changed into various people to inform me what was happening around the ship. Jim just so happened to chuck a knife at Morph after he tipped over an entire kettle of soup. To demonstrate how close he came to being hit, Morph changed into a knife and whipped himself by my ear as I cleaned the barnacles off the hull.

Silver told me I did a good job, and I was wise to ignore Scroop as he stared me down. I had been mopping then, and Scroop stared at me after he spat on my clean deck. I went back and cleaned that spot. Silver wasn't looking, so I quickly splashed some dirty water onto his leg. I only grinned a little, but I could feel Scroop's glare on the back of my neck.

I finished working and skipped dinner. I went to my cloth hammock to sleep. For a while, I only stare at the ceiling above me. I was feeling homesick, although I'm not sure what home I missed. I heard footsteps coming down the stairs and quickly closed my eyes.

"Rose, you're missing dinner," Jim said in a hushed voice. I pretended to be asleep. He placed a hand on my shoulder and shook me gently.

"I'm sick, go away," I lied.

"Oh, do you want any food or something to drink?" he asked. I'm sure Jim had good intentions, but I wasn't in the mood to talk or listen.

"Just leave me alone," I mumbled and pulled my pillow over my head.

"I'll be down in a little if you need anything," he said in a hushed voice as he slowly left the sleeping quarters. Once I was sure I was alone again, I rolled onto my back and sighed as I continued to stare at the ceiling. I ran my hands through my slightly knotted hair. Too bad I hadn't thought of bringing a brush or a spare change of clothes. This whole thing hadn't been planned.

Now, it was true, there was a dull ache in my stomach, but I wasn't sick and I wasn't hungry. I was definitely homesick. Like I said before, I'm not sure what home I was missing, but I was definitely missing something. Maybe it was Montressor in general, but I didn't belong there. I didn't really belong anywhere. I was destined to wander forever I guess. This was the beginning to that wandering.

And I'm telling you right now, this was a rough beginning. I hadn't felt this sore in a long time. I was used to manual labor and working hard, but this was different. I never did this much work because I _had_ to. I did things because I _wanted_ to.

Tomorrow, I'll let Jim handle the real work. I'll go back to the kitchens like all women were destined and forced to be…

**(A/N 2: what did you think? Be sure to review. I hope to get at least five more for this chapter! That should be fairly easy because NINE people have this story as a favorite, and TWELVE have it on alert! Thank you all. And, below is a list of all my reviews. From now on, I'm going to list any new reviews that I get! Think of it as incentive!)**

Muriel Candytuft (First Reviewer for this story!)

Jackie99

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**(Thank you to you all… Keep reviewing please. And, to everyone else, please review! I need to know what you think.)**


	10. And There's the Big Bang

**-Climbs out of a black hole and waves, looking very disheveled- Hello to all of you out there! I have returned from –Looks behind self and gulps- in there. It's a havoc- and chaos-filled place, very scary for an author (good for original stories though). In there were a countless number of atrocities such as computer viruses galore, writer's block, evil teachers, tests and reports, summer jobs, friend problems, summer school work, and more! **

**-Tomatoes are thrown- Stop, please; no more excuses, I promise. But look! -Waves torn papers- They're updates! Well, an update for this story… okay, so one-and-a-half updates; the second will be up tomorrow, or so I hope. By next Saturday I _promise_! **

**Really though, I feel _really_ bad about not updating- horrible and like a vermin actually. I was writing a despicable ten words a month, at most I think- and that only exaggerating a little. Do _not_ take AP courses in high school, honors is good enough. They look good for colleges, but are bad for you personal life and stuff like that. **

**Enough with that, here is chapter ten for Roses are Red. **

The one bright side about waking early in the morning before anyone else is… okay, I lied; there isn't a bright side. Well, you're awake before anyone else, but that is really all there is.

I woke up sore and still tired from all of my work the previous day. I didn't even want to move. My limbs felt like at least a couple of especially heavy bricks were attached to each one. I groaned as I sat up in my hammock.

The snores and other sounds of sleeping men filled the entire cabin. I rolled out of my bed and fell with a thud onto the hard wood floor. I slowly pulled my boots onto my feet and dragged myself to the kitchen.

"Mornin' Rose," Silver said cheerfully as soon as I sat in my seat. I only grunted my greeting, not up for words. He slid a bowl my way and I stopped it in front of myself so I could eat. The porridge was warm.

Morph flew into the room, chirping happily, "Shree; Shree; Shree!" He quickly settled on my shoulder, rubbing against my cheek.

"Hey Morph," I said tiredly.

"He gets a good morning hello but I don't?" Silver asked sarcastically as he finished a large pot of porridge for the rest of the sailors.

"Of course he gets a hello, he doesn't work me to the bone on my first day," I said with a smile. "And I did say hello to you, it sounded kind of like a caveman grunt."

"Where's Jimbo?" Silver asked. I stared up at Morph, who seemed intent upon a staring contest with me.

"Sleeping, I suppose," I said as I stared at the bubble gum pink blob floating in front of me. "What do you want me to do today? Jim can take over with the riggings. I'm awfully sore today." My jaw dropped, and I blinked; Morph squealed in delight, and zipped away. _Did I just admit that? I can't be getting soft already; not yet, not ever!_ I thought in horror.

"Well, the decks need to be cleaned up again, and the food doesn't prepare itself like I wish it would. And there's some cleaning around the kitchen and galley to be done," Silver said. I nodded as Jim trudged noiselessly down the stairs.

"Heya Jimbo," I said with mock cheer. He sat on a stool and rubbed the sleep from his eyes, not talking. Silver slid a bowl of porridge to Jim, who almost missed it. "Is poor Jimmy tired from all the work he did yesterday?"

"Tired of hearing your voice is more like it," he said with a smile. I laughed at him. Morph zipped into the room, squealing and chirping happily as he buzzed around Jim's head and then dropped into Jim's porridge and sucked that down. I laughed even harder at Jim's confounded look.

"You need to eat quicker than that next time," I told him as Morph burped contently.

"Still tired of your voice," Jim said annoyed. Silver chuckled and handed Jim another bowl. Morph continued burping cheerfully as Jim ate a little quicker and watched the pink blob from the corner of his eye.

And if you noticed, I am actually being civil towards Jim now. I decided he would be one of the few friends I would have on this voyage.

"Come on the two o' ye, let's get to work," Silver finally announced as a bell rang from somewhere on the deck.

"Aye captain," I said with a mock salute. Both of the men stared at me with confused looks on their faces. "I'm only kidding guys. You look as if you just saw a… I don't know, a pirate treasure." Silver shook his head and headed up onto the deck.

"You have problems Rose," Jim said.

"Don't worry Jimmy; I'll get over it one day. Can you imagine _me_ being sane? Spooky thought," I said as he left. There was nothing for me to do now but work. I looked at the sack of potatoes in the corner and groaned. I had to peel them all right now for dinner tonight; all too many of the potatoes. I was already dreading work as I sat down and began to peel them slowly.

"So Morph, what are the boys up to?" I asked as the little blob flew into the room. He chirped happily and flew in circles, diving into a barrel of purps. I was almost done, but that only meant it was time for a new task to begin.

"Sounds like lots of fun," I mused. Of course, I had no idea what Morph meant, but his happiness seemed contagious to me. Suddenly there was a crack, like a gunshot almost, right over my head. I instantly ducked down onto the ground, and heard Morph squeal as he dove into the barrel of purps in fright.

"What the bloody hell was that?" I whispered half to Morph, but mostly to myself. It sounded like a gunshot, but why would you shoot to miss? Thankfully it hadn't been a gunshot after all; lying in shards on the ground was a greenish bottle, or most of one. I looked towards the stairs, but saw no one there; they had plenty of time to run away. _But someone threw it at me, and they have to be on the ship still_. I stood and brushed myself off as I walked over to pick it up. Lying among the many miniscule pieces of glass was a folded piece of paper. I picked it up and shook the glass off of it.

"Roses are red  
When dead, you will be blue.  
Better watch your pretty head Rose  
Or we'll get you."

I stared at it in shock. Should I believe someone actually means something by that? What if I was in trouble? Of course, it was only a little poem a two-year-old could have written, but it still gave me chills. We hadn't been here long; I found it hard to believe I had enemies who wanted me dead already. Someone put serious thought into that. I thought of Scroop and his little gang, but still didn't know what to think. I hadn't really done anything wrong… yet.

_Should I tell Jim or Silver? What will they do? Nothing, no one can do anything yet; not until I know who wrote the letter. And it might mean nothing, a petty threat. But what if someone means business? What to do?_

"Morph, why is life so confusing?" I asked him as I pulled the little guy out from under a purp. He began to chirp, and instantly morphed into a miniature Scroop, dancing around in my hand and chirping.

"I think it was him too, but we can't be too sure," I told him. "Come on, we are close enough to being done down here. I don't really want to stay down here anymore; it's all closed in." I grabbed the waiting mop and soapy bucket of water, and headed up the stairs.

"We'll just have to watch out, won't we little guy?" I asked Morph as he hovered over my shoulder. Morph once again into a pair of large eyes. I began to laugh. "But do that looking out a little more discreetly, okay Morph? Big old eyes watching everyone might hint them that we know something's coming." I tossed the water on the deck and began to mop away, Morph hovering nearby the entire time.

Suddenly there was a bright flash and the ship tilted to its side.

"Good heavens The Star Pelusa has gone supernova," Doctor Doppler yelled from the side of the ship. I looked up to see a huge flash and felt the ship groan as if tilted from a blast of energy.

"Evasive action Mr. Turnbuckle," the captain yelled as she appeared on the deck.

"Aye Capt'n," he replied as the ship's crew became chaotic. There were screams from everywhere it seemed, and I just stood there in shock.

"All hands to stations," Arrow bellowed over the noise.

"Secure the sails Mr. Arrow!" Amelia yelled.

"Secure all sails reef them down men!" Arrow relayed. I watched everyone in the riggings working and spotted Jim tying something down. A wave of energy hit and Silver began tumbling from the riggings with a shout.

"Silver," Jim yelled and lunged for Silver's lifeline, grabbing it and pulling him up.

"Thanks Lad!" Silver said thankfully. That reminded me of my own lifeline, which I quickly ran over and tightened around my waist.

"The star Capt'n!" someone yelled and I turned to look at it, as did much of the crew.

"It's devolving into a…" Doppler gave a startled gasp as the star began to change, "a black hole!" He leaned over some dials and screens to figure something probably scientific out; that was, of course, Doppler's field of study.

"We're being pulled in," Mr. Turnbuckle said as he fought to turn the wheel at the helm. He was turning it with his whole weight behind him, and yet looked as if he wouldn't be able to hold it.

"We are not," Amelia lunged for the wheel just as Mr. Turnbuckle fell back. Another wave hit and the ship shook and knocked some of the crew from their positions. "Blast these waves, they are erratic," she said as she fought her own battle with the wheel.

"No captain they aren't erratic at all, the next one will occur in .02 seconds and then will be the largest blast of them all!" the doctor yelled over the frightened shouts of the crew who was still in the riggings. I felt useless standing around, so I made sure the lifelines were tied tightly and secure, even though Jim already had.

"Of course doctor, brilliant, that's it! We'll ride that last wave out of here!" Amelia said as she evolved a plan.

"All sails secured Capt'n," Arrow said calmly. Amelia smiled now, looking slightly evil.

"Good man Arrow; now, release them immediately!" she yelled.

"Aye Capt'n," Arrow said unsurely, as if he thought he'd heard her wrong. Maybe she had gone crazy. "You heard her men! Unfurl those sails!"

"What?!" someone yelled.

"But we just finished-" another started.

"Tying them down!" a third finished.

"Make up your blooming minds," yet another muttered. Everyone went off to work, each of them complaining about the captain having gone totally stark raving mad due to all of them stress.

"Mr. Hawkins, make sure the lifelines are secure," the captain ordered. Jim climbed down without a word and ran to where I was and re-checked them quickly; everything was safe, just as they had been only a few minutes before.

"Be careful," I told him as he ran by.

"Rose!" he said just realizing that I was standing there. "You shouldn't be here, it isn't safe."

"What like its any better for you to be here," I said sarcastically. He would have rolled his eyes, but the captain was calling his name.

"Are the lifelines secured Mr. Hawkins?" she was yelling repetitively at him.

"Aye Capt'n, lifeline secured," he replied and ran off to get back into the riggings.

"Rose," she called to me and I ran towards her. She leaned closer to me despite the fact I was only a few feet away. "Untie them all and retie them, just to be sure nothing will come loose. Understand?" she said. I nodded.

"Aye Capt'n," I said before hurrying to do the work. Just as I finished, a wave shook the ship and everyone was silent.

"Captain, here comes the last wave!" Doppler yelled over the roar of the black hole. We were being pulled into it at an alarming rate. I suddenly began to doubt the chances we had at surviving this encounter.

"Hold onto your lifelines gents, it's going to be a bumpy ride!" Amelia yelled, fitting the role of evil scientist perfectly. We were all going to die. I grabbed my lifelines and pulled myself to the mast, holding it tightly. I looked up to see most of the crew holding onto part of a sail, a mast, or the rigging as if it was their only chance of survival.

Everything became dark as we entered it, and then, my life flashed before my eyes. We weren't coming out of this one alive.

"_Sweetie, see you soon," my mom had said. It was out of the ordinary for her to be tucking me into bed. When I woke up the next morning, she was gone. Dad ran away for a while._

"_My name's Jim," the boy said when our solar-surfers crashed together.  
_"_I'm Rose," I had said. A woman began to call Jim home for supper.  
_"_I gotta go, do you live here?" he asked.  
_"_I don't have a home," I had told him. "My mommy and daddy left me."_

"_I'm sorry to inform you Rose, but your grades are not meeting the requirements. You will be forced to leave school, or you may find a tutor in order to stay at Montressor High," Principal Newton said as I sat in his office. He had fifteen tentacles and five eyes; his purple, obese body overflowed the chair he was sitting in. He also wore a monocle over one of his eyes.  
_"_That's okay, I'm dropping out," I said. "I mean, who wants an education from a guy who can't even fit in a chair and has so many arms that he-"  
_"_That's more than enough Miss," he yelled.  
_"_Yeah, I've had enough too," I said and stormed out of the school._

"_Jim, have you ever been kissed?" I asked him as we sat on this ledge on the edge of Montressor; our feet hung over the side. A fence about a hundred yards away kept people from coming out this far and reduced the dangers of falling off the edge of the planet. Needless to say, we'd flown right over that. Our solar-surfers rested a few feet away, just in case anyone noticed us out here and we need a quick getaway.  
_"_Once," he said, and threw a rock into the blackish-blue oblivion. "How about you; ever been kissed?"  
_"_Nope," I said and threw my own rock out there. "I punched the last kid who tried it and broke his nose."  
_"_When was that?" he asked.  
_"_I think we were nine at the time," I said and he began to laugh._

"_Daddy's home," I heard as I tried to sleep in the middle of the night. I was thirteen, and I knew that voice anywhere. I shot upright to see my father standing a few feet away; I could tell he was drunk. I grabbed my pack and ran away as he shouted curses at me.  
_"_Jim," I hissed at his window, tapping on it. "Jim, it's Rose; open up your window!" He was snoring loudly in his sleep. The window was already slightly opened, so I cracked it a little more. "Jim," I hissed and tossed a rock at his bed.  
_"_What the hell?" I heard him say.  
_"_Jim, it's Rose," I said as I laughed slightly. "Let me in." He came over and opened the window, pulling me in.  
_"_What's wrong Rose? You look like you've seen a ghost," he said.  
_"_Close enough, my dad found me in the park," I said in a whisper. Jim's jaw dropped and he looked shocked, almost like he'd seen a ghost. My father hadn't been around for almost five years.  
_"_You know it was him?" he asked, closing the window. I nodded, leaning against the window frame and yawning as I did so. "Well, then stay here for the night. I'll sleep on the floor." He pulled a pillow and blanket down for himself when I crawled into his bed._

"_Mrs. Hawkins, I was wondering, can I, uhm, get a job here… please?" I asked and she smiled, handing me an apron.  
_"_You start now," she said._

_Getting into a fight with my father; solar-surfing; memories, discussions and fights, getting I trouble with the law, every important memory I ever had flew by my eyes in rapid succession._

And then it all stopped and there was silence followed by a _Boom!_

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	11. They Know

**(A/N: I'm two days late, but internet was down. This was ready on Friday for your viewing, but my computer hates me. Without further ado, here is chapter... wow, eleven of Roses Are Red. Enjoy and review please!)**

**Claimer: It is ALL mine! Evil laugh**

And then it all stopped and there was silence.

Well, it was silent except for that ear-drum-bursting, ship-rocking, life-flashing-right-before-your-eyes _Boom!_

Other than that, it was totally, utterly silent.

The ship shook as the last blast hit and the sails caught it. It seemed as if the ship was going to explode into a million pieces from the force alone. People screamed and lifelines were tugged as bodies were tossed from where they were in the riggings. I felt my lifeline tug around my waist and my breath left when it reached its end. I hit the hard deck and my breath left in another _whoosh_, and I just lay there.

The ship was riding the latest blast out of the black hole.

And we were left in the clear.

We'd lived.

The entire crew began to cheer when we realized that we had survived that.

"Capt'n, that was- oh my goodness- that was absolutely the most- it was-" the doctor was in shock, barely able to get his words out.

"Oh tish-tosh doctor; actually your astronomical advice was most helpful," she said calmly as she used some sort of device to measure something. I was in the dark as to what was going on once again. Doppler seemed rather shocked that she admitted to him that he had helped.

"Why thank you Ma'am! I happen to have lots of help to offer anatomically- mnemonically- astronomically." The doctor hit himself in the head as he stumbled over his words yet again. I almost had to resist the urge to laugh at him, but I was shaken from the latest… experience aboard the _Legacy_. I wouldn't forget this one anytime soon. And why had I ventured on this trip anyway? Oh right, for Jim; just making sure all of you remember that.

"Well Mr. Silver, I must congratulate you; I have to admit your cabin boy did a bang up job with those lifelines," Amelia said, also smiling at me. Jim and Silver, who seemingly had bonded already, exchanged playful blows with each other and laughed. "All hands accounted for Mr. Arrow?"

A hush went over the crew as the captain scanned for him. "Mr. Arrow?" she called. But there was no response from him among the crowd. People began to mumble and step aside as Scroop walked forward. There was a single gasp from the crew when he revealed Mr. Arrow's hat from behind his back.

"I'm afraid," he paused and looked up sadly, taking in the sad face of the Captain, "Mr. Arrow has been lost." He handed the hat to Captain Amelia. "It appears that his lifeline was not well-secured after all." While everyone looked at Jim for his reaction, Scroop found me among the crowd; he knew. Everyone turned to look at the place where the lifelines were attached. There was one missing; Jim ran over there.

"Oh _hell_ no," I muttered.

"No I had checked them all. They were secured," Jim said in disbelief. "I- I- I checked them all. I did; they were secured." All eyes were on him, and I felt a pang of guilt because I know Jim was right; he checked them, and they were safe before I got to them. "I swear I did." I'd checked them as well and they'd been safe. I couldn't have messed up again. Something had happened to his lifeline, and my guess was that Scroop was at the bottom of this. Captain Amelia cleared her throat, silencing the low murmur emitting from the crew.

"Mr. Arrow was a- ahem- a fine spacer; finer than any of us could-" she paused for a moment and anyone could see she was hit the hardest by his death. She held his hat in her hands. "Finer than any of us could ever hope to be." She seemed to suddenly recover and straightened up, not wanting to seem weak to her crew. She lowered the hand that was holding his hat to her side now. "But he knew the risks, as do we all. "Resume your posts; we carry on." And with that, work continued as if nothing had happened.

Just as I went below deck, I saw the glare Jim sent in Scroop's direction as he climbed into the riggings. I sent a dagger-filled glare towards Scroop as he looked at me going down into the galley to finish dinner.

It was night, long after dinner. I realized I should probably tell Jim that it wasn't his fault and Amelia told me to redo the lifelines. One of us having to feel guilty would be bad enough; I felt even worse knowing Jim was only sad because of me. Everything was always my fault, wasn't it?

"Hey Jim," I said and he looked up from wherever he had been looking. He was leaning on the railing, and had been looking down into the black oblivion below us. A few stars and planets were visible, but all were far away and only slightly visible. "I wanted to, uhm, tell you-"

"Jimbo, come 'ere," Silver yelled from the galley. _Just my luck, Silver randomly needs Jim when I want to talk with him,_ I thought. _Every other time, Silver could care less what Jim is doing or where he is._

"Later," Jim said and ran towards Silver.

"Jim, it wasn't your fault!" I yelled. He stopped and spun around. "Amelia had me recheck the lifelines; it's my fault Arrow died." I think Jim looked shocked, but he didn't exactly show that; he looked… relieved.

"Jimbo," Silver called again and Jim hurried off.

I was sitting on the railing at the stern of the ship, my feet dangling lazily over the edge. I was debating just dropping off and disappearing forever after what happened with Arrow. It had finally hit me after I told Jim… I had killed someone.

"Rose, don't worry about what happened before," Jim said from behind me. He snuck up on me, and he was lucky I didn't fall overboard. "I know it wasn't your fault. Something was up with that because I know you couldn't do something like that. You don't mess up that way." Tears welled up in my eyes because he didn't even get it. No one was going to get what I felt like. He was sitting on some stairs ten feet away, so I sat down next to him.

"The thing is, Jim, I _did_ mess up. I messed up. I fucking messed up… and nothing will change that. Arrow is gone because I couldn't do something so simple as tying a damn _knot_ right.

"I'm a mess up. I don't know what to do any more. Nothing I do is good enough," I took a shaky breath and wiped some of the tears from my eyes. "I can't get anything right," I sobbed because I knew the awful truth. I knew I was always doing things wrong. Jim pulled me in tight against his chest and I cried there. I felt his chin rest on the top on my head as he stroked my hair. "I wish that for once I wasn't such a mistake."

"Rose you're not a mistake; everyone makes mistakes-"

"Not as many as me," I interrupted.

"Everyone makes mistakes; some of us make even more than you. You're fine because nobody's perfect. I mean, if I'm not perfect, then who has a shot?" He said with a laugh. "But don't worry Rose, okay? Everything is going to work out soon. Trust me, I have a good feeling about this," Jim said. It was quiet and I finally calmed down enough to stop crying.

"I'm such a baby," I said as I pulled away and wiped my eyes.

"You're one big, tough baby then," Jim said. I laughed slightly, tears mostly forgotten. "And stop putting yourself down for once."

"Scroop was behind it all you know," I said, ignoring his last statement. I was staring at one of the night watchmen in the riggings. He looked a bit uneasy as he balanced on thin lines and poles. Even I could balance better than him, and this was my first time on a ship. I thought this crew was supposed to have experience with this sort of thing. "The way he looked at me after telling Amelia that Arrow was dead was just… expectant of something. But I don't know what, maybe he wanted me to attack him and get sent to the brig for the rest of the voyage. But why would he really want that? He's risking his own neck to plot against us.

"He killed Arrow and it was all on purpose. He doesn't like either of us, and what a better way to get us in trouble… it worked a little better than he expected it though. Too bad I didn't follow his plan. That's one thing that went wrong."

"I thought that too… about Scroop being behind it all," Jim said. "And I told Silver, but he told me not to jump to conclusions." I rolled my eyes.

"Protecting one of his own is what Silver is doing," I stated. "They're all in it I'd bet. And that's not a good thing; we're way outnumbered." I yawned. "I'm going to sleep now Jim, see you tomorrow."

(Third Person Point of View)

One of the men was shaking Silver awake; after grumbling for a minute, he rolled over and glared at the man who woke him.

"Better be important Tymble," Silver practically spat at the man. It would have sounded more menacing if Silver hadn't been half-asleep still.

"Aye it is," Tymble said, and ran a reddish flipper over his sweaty forehead. He was breathing heavily as he fought to catch his breath; he'd run across the length of the ship. That wasn't an easy thing for a man of his size and weight to do. The million extra flippers didn't help him either; they got in his way.

"Well out with it man," Silver hissed. "Or ye'll wake the entire crew."

"They know; the girl and boy know," Tymble spat out. Silver's normal eye widened in shock, and then narrowed as he thought. The laser eye was making patterns on Tymble's face, making the man slightly uneasy.

"Git back on yer watch Tymble and we'll discuss it come morn," Silver said as he lay back in the bed. He sighed and realized this was a much harder task than anyone was prepared for. The girl was too smart for her own good; the boy was wrapped around his finger though. Half of his work was done for him. Except… well, it was obvious the boy admired the girl. If she was to try and convince him that the crew was corrupt… he'd probably believe her. He'd lose his trust in the cyborg he'd only just met. It was time to work his magic on the girl as well; her and the boy would be his puppets soon enough.

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	12. Longboats and Rough Times Ahead

"Rose," Silver bellowed as the crew worked hard. I was in the rigging, helping another crew member tie down sails properly. It was a learning experience for me; when in a hurry the sails were tied one way, later they were adjusted with proper knots and such. After yesterday's excitement, they needed tending to for sure. Several would have to be mended, and a smaller mast needed repairing because it had split. "Git down 'ere Rose," Silver bellowed again. I looked at my two-headed partner, gave a quick nod, and hurried down a rope.

"Yes sir?" I said quickly, fixing my baggy pants around my clunky boots.

"We're going out on a longboat. Let's go," he said. I watched him limp ahead of me. I quickly scanned the riggings for Jim; he was high up taking some sails down with other workers. "Stop daydreaming girl and git movin'," Silver shouted at me. With a start, I followed him below deck.

"If you don't, uhm, mind me asking, why are we going out today?" I asked. In just two quick steps I had caught up with his hasty, irregular steps.

"Yer gonna have a quick leaning experience," he informed me. I rolled my eyes. We came to the longboat and started to prepare it for going out. Jim had already gone out with Silver on one; he liked the trip, but claimed it wasn't as fun as a solar-surfer. And Silver kept a close eye on him (I assume it would be the mechanical eye; he can probably see better with that one). That is when it hit me. He wanted to watch me.

"How far are we going?" I asked to keep conversation going. He heaved a deep sigh as we untied ropes and did quick maintenance on it. Some parts of the _Legacy_ had been damaged in the black hole incident, but nothing was serious.

"We're followin' the ship. Go up to the galley and fetch me glass for me. We'll leave when ye git back," Silver informed me, tightening a rope. I quickly ran through the ship. Reaching the deck and daylight, I scanned for Jim; he was still working hard. There was no way to get his attention. I sighed, found Silver's glass, and ran back under the deck to the awaiting boat. On the way, on a whim, I grabbed my solar-surfer to bring with us.

"Here," I said and tossed it to the cyborg; he caught it easily. I laid the solar-surfer into the boat while Silver placed the glass inside a pocket. After a quick lesson on how to man the solarboat, I dropped into the boat. I began getting ready to lower the longboat when someone stepped out of the shadows.

"Hey Rosie, it's been a while," my father said; I cringed slightly at the sight of him. I stared at him, watching his every move as he sat in the longboat as well. A quick glance at Silver didn't reveal any emotion from him, but suddenly I felt ten times the apprehension I had moments before.

"Where have you been hiding?" I asked my… father. I hated to think this man was related to me. When he spoke and as he came closer, I could smell liquor on his breath.

"Silver's been putting me up down 'ere; meals twice a day, proper sleeping arrangements. And you know why?" he asked. I shook my head, trying to avoid his piercing eyes. "So we can dispose of you before the mutiny." We finished lowering out of the _Legacy_ and I took to directing the longboat after the ship. Although I was keeping myself together on the outside, I was obviously going insane and I was beginning to feel sick.

_Okay there's gonna be a mutiny. Jim and I were right. That just means that when I don't show up tonight, Jim will know what's going on. So I'm gonna die. Well… crap. What the hell am I supposed to think? Or do? Sit here and wait or fight back? Obviously fight back, but how?_ I glanced around the longboat. Silver was sitting directly in front of me and my father was behind him. It was a tight squeeze obviously.

"Veer off from the starboard side of the ship," Silver instructed. I followed his instructions. My mind was racing. I couldn't describe the emotions I felt really; fear and anger, all sorts of things.

"Do you know how we will get away with murdering you girl?" My father asked as he inspected the galaxy around us. The ship was disappearing quickly. "The same way I got rid of the bitch. That damn mother of yours, she was always caused more trouble than she was worth. Took her out one day in our little boat and dropped her into space; she hasn't been heard from since. No one suspected a thing. No one missed the little ugly whore. And the same goes for you." I kept my gaze towards the sky, avoiding the two men despite the fact I could feel their stares burrowing holes through my skull.

"Jim," I said simply.

"What?" my father said, spitting at his feet. Silver was still silent, watching me closely. I finally met my father's gaze.

"Jim will miss me," I said. My father began laughing at me and my simple stare turned into a menacing glare towards him. He laughed so hard, the boat began to rock and I held on in fear of falling overboard.

"Stupid bitch," he managed to gasp. Then he lunged at me and I slammed into the side on the boat. My side exploded in pain and I was sent into fighting mode, but it was too late. He had the upper hand and there was no way I could move.

"Get off!" I screamed shrilly. My voice was lost in space instantly and wouldn't carry. I slid to the floor as my father began to strangle me, his weight crushing me. I fought with him, kicking and trying to hit him somehow, to break his grasp around my neck. Silver moved to steady the boat and steer us back towards the ship. He still said nothing.

"No one will miss you. Yer buddy Silver here has it all planned out," my vision was growing spotted. "I go back into hiding, and he has a story planned out about an accident with a flock of Swindlewinder-Garglushes. You fell out as he tried to steady the longboat, and you were instantly lost. There was noting he could in order to save you without endangering his own life as well." I was losing this battle; my father outweighed me and had an element of surprise over me. I couldn't believe I was about to die. Tears came to my eyes.

"Stop," I gasped out weakly, only making him smile.

"Bye Rose, and remember, we got you," he said evilly as I slowly lost consciousness. I felt my body leave the hardwood floor of the longboat and flip over the side. I felt air rushing around me as I tumbled into nothingness. I heard my father laugh menacingly as the boat headed further and further away…

**(Switch to Jim's Point of View)**

It was growing dark and the longboat hadn't returned yet. Rose and Silver had gone out what seemed like forever ago and they had veered off the path of the ship. I didn't like this one bit, but I was forced to do all of the tasks Silver and Rose might have done on top of my own, so I had no time to complain. And besides, Treasure Planet was in sight now and if I left to look for them, I could miss landing, a once in a lifetime experience.

Knowing Rose was a once in a lifetime experience…

There are two longboats still in the hold, so I could go out looking, but the chances of finding them would be slim. They could be anywhere and it would be a bad idea to get lost on my own. With a sigh, I continue scouring the multitude of pots, pans, plates, and other dirtied utensils from this evening's meal.

Suddenly, as I was cleaning a pot I almost disappeared into while trying to clean the bottom, heavy footsteps and shouts could be heard from above me. I heard Silver's name shouted and I hurried up there.

Amidst the shouting, I heard, "Where's Rose?!"

"…We were suddenly in the middle of a humongous swarm of raving Swindlewinder-Garglushes, and it's mating season y'know," Silver was saying to the crowd around him. I stared as I listened to him. _Where is Rose?_ "Well, the longboat couldn't handle the bumping and Rose fell from the boat. I tried to catch her, but she was gone before I could do anything," Silver said with great remorse. My jaw dropped and my stomach twisted into a million knots when I realized he was speaking the truth. Rose was gone… forever… dead somewhere, or maybe floating in space still, dying; knowing she will die slowly and painfully eventually. A glance up at Silver showed him rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "And, uhm, by the way boys… _we move now!_"

He gave a shrill whistle and suddenly everyone was fighting on the deck. I saw Doppler trying to feebly fight off two or three men, but he failed instantly. Someone took a swing at me from the side, but I ducked and missed it. The fight didn't last long. Amelia, Doppler, and I were tied up and thrown into Amelia's cabin. We were being kept there until the men could find the map; they knew about it, but didn't know where it was being hidden thankfully. It appears they had rebelled too soon. And it was then that I knew, once the fighting and mutiny began, that Rose had not just died. That had been the plan, the cue for the mutiny to begin; she didn't have a chance against the cyborg.

"This looks like the end of the line boys," Amelia said remorsefully. Was that remorse from Rose's death or the loss of her ship? I stared out the window at Treasure Planet, angry and sad at the same time. My best friend, my only _true_ friend, was gone. Amelia sighed and looked defeated; all of her honor and confidence had been stripped away. But had she lost the only person she actually cared about? The only person that cared about her…

"I feel so hopeless," Doppler said, jabbering nonsensically. "I only there was something I could do, but I am only a simple, weak man." Suddenly he gasped, and when I looked, he was holding up both of his hands, the rope only tied around one. "A weak man with abnormally thin wrists," he said with a small laugh.

"Untie us good man, don't just sit there gawking at nothing. We'll escape!" Amelia said almost laughing manically, that crazy laugh was actually quite frightening. "We can get my ship back from the bloody mutineers and-"

"Or we could steal a longboat and just land on Treasure Planet without them noticing," I interjected. Captain Amelia smiled and laughed as she stood and stretched. The doctor moved quickly to work on my own rope handcuffs.

"Brilliant idea Jim, we'll _sneak_ out and they won't suspect a thing!" she said. As I stood, she took the map from its hiding place in some floorboards. "Guard this with your life," she said handing it to me almost giddily. She was insane now. The mutiny had caused her to lose the last shred of her reason she had since Arrow's "mysterious" death.

"Aye Captain," I said, slipping it into a pocket. It was heavy, just like the burden it had become. This was the reason Rose was dead.

"Here doctor, know how to use one of these?" she said throwing him a gun. It whirred to life and fired a giant hole in the ground; he held it in shock.

"Uhm, no," he said and she sighed, hurrying now as the men began to unlock the door. I was tossed a gun while moving a desk in front of the door, buying us time while Amelia widened Doppler's hole in the ship.

"You lead us through there Jim, while I make sure they can't follow us," Amelia instructed. "This will lead to the longboat area where we can get out hopefully." I dropped in, followed by the doctor and captain who quickly followed. As we ran, Silver bellowed something angrily and someone was thrown down here after us.

"Get them you incompetent scum," Silver yelled. I could hear people above us as we appeared in the longboat hold. Silver was already there somehow along with a couple of his burly men, all of them were armed. I fired the gun without thinking and let Amelia and Doppler into the boat. Doppler fired at men in the midst of the chaos. Amelia and I began to lower the boat while Doppler scared the men off, not with well-aimed shots, but with his crazy, chaotic blasting. Amelia had a few shots in that hit some men. At least five were killed.

"You little squid," Morph suddenly chirped before grabbing the map from my pocket.

"_Morph_" I yelled and lunged for him, barely missing the pink blob. I cursed under my breath and looked up to see Silver staring; he had caught the movement and glint of the map.

"Oh Morphy," he began calling. I glared at him and tried to catch Morph as he zipped around the various boxes. As I jumped one, a man appeared from behind the crates. Hitting him over the head once with the butt of my gun, I kept chasing Morph. The little blob dove into a pile of rope. Glancing up at Silver, we had slight eye contact for less than a second before lunging for the rope. I reached it first and pulled the map out, then ran for the longboat as it dropped out of the hold.

"Jim, do you have the map?" Amelia asked quickly and apprehensively. I held it up and showed it to her before hiding it in my back pocket again. Amelia began to steer us towards Treasure Planet just as a crack louder than thunder filled the air. Turning quickly, I saw the cannonball hurtling towards us and everything went into slow motion. Amelia tried to steer out of the way, but we were hit just barely on the rudder. But a hit is a hit, and we were suddenly crashed through trees and finally landed in a disastrous heap upon the hard ground.

For quite some time, no one moved or made a sound. It was dark by the time I had regained consciousness. I didn't even remember passing out. I felt like jell-o with nerve endings in great distress at that moment. Lifting a piece of the shattered longboat from on top of me, I stood slowly, my body aching. It was growing dark now. At some point during that period of unconsciousness, I realized why I recognized the man that had jumped out of the boxes at me… it was Rose's father. Suddenly, this whole scenario began to make even more sense.

"Oh Jim," Doppler said in shock. "Are you okay?!" He was tending to Amelia who was passed out but leaning against a tree. Her left arm was in a sling, cradled against her chest which was wrapped as well.

"Just fine doc," I said rubbing my stiff neck. The map felt heavy in my pocket. I realized he had forgotten about me after landing but had taken care of the Captain almost immediately.

"Go find somewhere for shelter," he told me. "Uhm, Captain Amelia ordered it before she passed out; I'm not ordering you, just passing along the, uhm, message," he added meekly. I sighed and began to walk through the brush. It was impossible to see very far ahead, so I knew it would be hard to find anywhere safe. Hopefully Silver and his crew hadn't landed here yet, but I wouldn't doubt that they had.

"_Hello!_" a robot yelled jumping into my line of vision. I fell back startled, firing the gun once but missing it by inches. "Finally, carbon-based life forms have come to rescue me at last," he quickly said pulling me to my feet easily and shaking my hand. I stared with my mouth just hanging open. "I just want to hug you and squeeze you and never let go! Let me just… hold you close!" I tried to shrug the robot away but it was impossible; it had a vice-like grip around me.

"Let me go," I gasped, pushing… him… it… away from me.

"Sorry, sorry," it said, apologizing a million times and dancing around crazily. I rolled my eyes and thought of how lucky we were to be stranded with a psycho robot on Treasure Planet. "It's just I've been marooned on this planet for _so_ long. Don't get me wrong, the solitude is just fine, but, well, after a hundred years… _ya' go little nuts!_" I stared at him as the robot continued to rant and rave at extremely high decibels. "Oh, I am so sorry! I should introduce myself! I am… uhm… I am… I would be… I am, uhm," suddenly Morph cut him off, appearing in my pocket… right where the map had been. I groaned and rolled my eyes. Morph quickly spun into a cuckoo bird and began to mock the crazed robot. I quickly hit him, causing the blob to burst into billions of little bubbles that reassembled themselves instantly. "I am B.E.N. Of course, I am B.E.N., BioElectronic Navigator." He sighed and wiped his metallic brow of imaginary robot sweat.

"Wow," I muttered.

"And you are?" the robot, B.E.N., asked.

"Jim," I said with a sigh. "Listen, I've gotta be going. I'm kinda in a hurry right now."

"Oh what a pleasure to meet you Jimmy!" the robot said as he shook my hand yet again.

"It's just Jim-"

"We can be best buddies and every-"

"Listen, I've gotta go. I've got these pirate guys chasing after me and my friends ad we need a place to hide out for a while-"

"Oh," B.E.N. said with another outburst. "Do _not_ get me started on pirates! I can't stand them! I can remember Captain Flint! This guy he had such a temper-"

"Whoa, wait, you knew Captain Flint?!" I sputtered out in shock.

"I think he suffered from mood swings, personally. But don't quote my on that, I'm not a therapist!" _You need one though…_ "But, you just let me know when I start to ramble."

"You're rambling. So, do you, uhm, know about Flint's treasure?" I asked striving for casual.

"Treasure…" B.E.N. muttered looking as deep in thought as a psychotic robot can.

"Yeah, Flint's Trove, the loot of a thousand world's, what this planet is named-"

"It's all a little- little fuzzy. W-wait I do re-remember! I r-remember treasure! Lots of it- lots of treasure! B-b-b-b-buried- buried in the centroid- centroid- centroid of the mechanism! And a big door, huge- huge door; opening and c-closing. Opening and closing. And Captain Flint, he wanted to m-make sure that no one could eve-ever- ever reach it. Get to his treasure! So I helped-" something about the robot changed. He had been in a trance, and suddenly, his eyes began to flash and his mechanic body began to spasm and freak out. "Da-data inaccessible reboot! Reboot! Reboot!"

"B.E.N.," I said, stepping out from behind a bush I hadn't realized I'd hidden behind. The robot had stopped whatever and was staring at me yet again. Morph poked it's head out from behind m shoulder and made big eyes at the rusted robot.

"And you are?" he asked. I sighed and rolled my eyes in frustration. This was getting way beyond ridiculous.

"What about the treasure?" I asked. He simply stared.

"I really wanna say… Larry," he stated.

"What about the centroid of the mechanism?" I basically growled at him. Ridiculous was about ten stops ago, before I had ever thought I leaving home. Ridiculous was when Rose went out with Silver and I hadn't followed… hadn't been able to save her.

"I'm sorry my memory isn't what it used to be. I've lost my mind!" the robot yelled and began to laugh manically. "I've lost my mind! Say, you didn't happen to find it, did you?"

"Nope, haven't seen it; I doubt anyone ever will though," I was beyond frustration.

"Well, my missing piece; my primary memory circuit," he said, starting to search me. I squirmed away.

"Primary, this is just _perfect_!" I muttered and began to walk through the trees with Morph buzzing around my head, leaving the stupid robot behind me. Hopefully it'd get lost. "I've gotta find a place to hide," I yelled over my shoulder to it, not wanting him to follow. There was a crash and sudden footsteps behind me as he hurried to catch up. "I've gotta be going." We reached a clearing and I turned to glare at him.

"Oh," it said disheartened, "so, this is goodbye then? I'm so-sorry I'm so… dysfunctional. Go ahead, leave me." And then… he began to whine and wheel away. I stared at Morph, fighting with my better judgment and suddenly awakened conscious. It was a great time for it to show itself, just when I didn't need it and could care less about anything besides finding a shelter.

"Look, uhm, if you're going to coming along… you have to stop talking so much," I said in defeat. In the second it took me to say that, B.E.N. had wheeled around and attached himself to me and was laughing manically.

"Oh joy, huzzah! I knew you'd say that, this is _fantastic_! My best buddy and I are looking-" he saw me glaring. "Oh right," he said, lowering his voice to a whisper, "we're being quiet.

"And, stop touching me," I said as I turned to walk.

"Right… okay then, no touching and talking; no touching Jim, no talking loudly, got it!" the robot yelled. "Say you think we can maybe stop at my place before our big search ensues? I need to make a bit of a quick pit stop. It is kinda urgent," he laughed shakily before parting some bushes and miraculously revealing his… home. I gaped at him and could only glare.

"B.E.N., I think you just solved my problems!"

"Oh, you had to go as well?" he asked innocently after a moment. I stared at him and sighed, wondering how I was the lucky one to find a psycho robot with a missing memory circuit.

"Let's go get my friends; we'll go to your place right after that. I turned and headed back towards where the Captain and Doppler had been waiting with the ruined ship. Morph buzzed happily around the robot's head and I sighed when I realized that although we were on Treasure Planet, we had no map.

And even worse: Rose was gone…

* * *

**Tuesday I have no school. I'll update then.  
_But_ only if I get more than five reviews.  
Thanks and parting words:  
Listen to "Snow Patrol"  
Random, but they amaze me.**

**- Running.  
(Note: Reviewers will be acknowledged on Tuesday. Thank you so much for sticking with me! I hope support will continue.)**


	13. No Time To Mourn Their Loss

**(A/N: I said Tuesday, but my computer was down. A day late, here it is. Hopefully, it's been long awaited!)**

After settling in at B.E.N.'s… home with the doctor and extremely delirious Captain Amelia, I began to think. Rose was obviously the only thing on my mind. How could she… be… dead? I tried to imagine it, but found that impossible. I could only see her bright smile, the twinkling gleam in her eye… I couldn't picture her cold… lifeless… not breathing… Could she really be gone? I sighed and stared at the strange markings on the inside of B.E.N.'s home. They were exactly like the map, the map I had lost.

"Hey look!" B.E.N. exclaimed suddenly, breaking my train of thought. My head snapped up and I watched him jumping up and down by the doorway. My stomach dropped. "There's some more of your buddies Jimmy!" I jumped up and sprinted towards him, knocking over a table in the process. "Hey fellas, over h-" I quickly tackled him to the ground and covered his mouth, firing a few shots at Silver's men as they fired at me.

"Stop wastin' yer fire!" silver yelled. There was silence as I glanced over the edge of the mossy doorway, watching as Silver pulled out a white towel and began waving it as if in defeat. That meant nothing; their loyalty and word and trust had flown out the window long before the mutiny. "Hello up there!" he called. "Jimbo, I'd like a word with ye' if it's all right with the Capt'n. No tricks, just a palaver with ya'!"

"Come to bargain for the map doubtlessly," Amelia muttered, finally somewhat coherent. I turned and looked at them, back against the cold metal separating us from them. I took a deep breath and glared at Morph. The small splotch of pink was hovering around my head, but when I looked his way, he hid among various metal parts littered around B.E.N.'s home.

"We don't have it either Capt'n," I admitted. And if looks could kill then I'd be dead two-and-a-half times over.

"_What, no map?_" Delbert and Amelia said at the same time.

"What, no map?" B.E.N. mimicked for a reason none of us could understand. I shrugged.

"Morph changed shifted into a copy of it and I had him… but if they haven't realized that yet… then… it's still-"

"On the ship," Amelia exclaimed, wincing in pain. "We'll just sneak back aboard and find it! Well… maybe just you Hawkins…"

"I'm going out there to talk with Silver. If I don't come back in ten minutes or if I disappear, don't leave this place," I said. I tucked one firearm away in my boot, keeping it hidden yet accessible. I hurried out before anyone could argue, Morph giggling behind me.

"Hey Morphy," Silver said when we met; the little pink shape shifter hurried to meet him, squeaking the entire time. "I wondered where ye were off to!" Silver leaned against a rock formation among then hundreds to choose from. We were on the edge of the forest now, where the flat and slanted ground met. He sighed and began to rub his mechanical joints. I stared into the trees and bushes, aware anyone could arrive at any second and I would be outnumbered. To out right was a ledge and I made a mental note to watch up there as well. "This poor old leg's been smarting ever since that game we played in the galley." He laughed slightly, but I made sure to only glare at him with pure hate, not to show any other emotion. "Whatever ye heard back there, at least that part concerning you, I didn't mean a word of it. If that bloodthirsty lot thought I'd gone soft… they're have gutted up both!" He paused and I avoided eye contact with him. Instead I watched as Morph zipped around between us, squealing and chirping happily.

"Now listen to me," he continued, moving closer to me now. "If we play out cards right, we can both walk away from this rich as kings." I laughed.

"Yeah," I said.

"You get me that map, and, uhm, an even portion… of that treasure is yours," Silver said chuckling. At that point, he stuck out his mechanical hand, and I considered it.

"Boy, you really are something. All that talk of greatness… light coming off my sails… it was all a joke, what a joke," I said, and now it was my turn to laugh. Silver's jovial expression immediately turned stormy and he withdrew his hand.

"Now Jimbo, see here-" Silver said.

"Well at least you taught me one thing, right: stick to it. Well… that's what I'm going to do. Stick to it and make sure you never see one drabloon of _my_ treasure!"

"That treasure is owed to me, by thunder!" Silver roared at me. I took a step back.

"Well try and find without my map by thunder!" I yelled back at him. And then, Morph transformed into the pile of rope and the map, tossing himself into the pile. My jaw must have dropped for a second because Silver knew that I no longer had it.

"Playin' games again, are we Jimbo?" Silver said, taking a step towards me. I began to back up, knowing that directly behind me was that rock ledge. My back pressed against it and I knew I was cornered with no way out.

"Yeah, we're playing games all right," I said, thinking of how fast I could grab my gun and run out of here.

"I still don't like 'em Jimbo. Never have and never will…" he paused for a moment and I could hear the clicking and grinding of gears. "But, uhm, say hello to dear Rose for me-"

"Why not tell her yourself Silver!" Rose said from the edge of the ledge. Both of us looked up in disbelief. There she was, alive, smiling, and safe.

Rose was not dead.

"I'll be damned," Silver muttered as she dropped the ten feet off the ledge to Silver's side. She pressed the gun to his temple and smiled sweetly as usual. I stared at her, jaw wide open. I could not believe my eyes or ears; how could you expect me to? I could only stare and think. Think that I had lost it, that this was a dream, that the hell I had been putting myself through had been a hoax. I wanted to touch Rose, just to see if she was real. My heart was beating irregularly, and I knew it wasn't just out of shock. I love Rose. It had scared me and left me wanting to die without her here. Morph was squealing and zipping around her head, annoyed that his presence wasn't being acknowledged.

"Hey Jim, close your mouth; you're attracting flies." I didn't listen to her. I was trying to accept the fact she really was there; I watched her turn to stare at Silver. "You didn't think you could get rid of me _that_ easily did you? In fact, I was only falling for a few moments; do you know how I did it though?" She was staring at the golden map that was in her left hand as it reflected the sunlight on her face. "The solar-surfer, you didn't notice it did you? Details, boys, are by far the most important aspects of life; they can change the fate of the universe. As I fell, rather, as I was _thrown_ from the longboat by my own _father_, I grabbed hold of it and dragged that with me. Once you lot were out of sight, I powered it up and followed," she was smiling and obviously very pleased with herself. I couldn't help but smile and think of how amazing she really was.

"I waited for the majority of the crew to leave the _Legacy_ before boarding it. Scroop was the only man you left… he isn't there anymore. I'd imagine… he's floating in space somewhere with the same fate you had planned for me. I'd imagine that the bastard is probably floating with him as well; oh you know, my _father_, the one you wanted to _kill_ me. Dead as a doornail; put a few shots from this baby right through his thick head," Rose was holding another gun in her hand, twirling it like a toy.

"I got the map. It caught my attention when I was going to steal a longboat. I realized what had happened to some extent. Either it had somehow been forgotten- although that is highly unlikely seeing as it is the very reason you lot are fighting- or it was being hidden rather poorly. Whatever the reason it was there, I took it. The _Legacy_ is tied down only a few miles from here.

"And now, we are here. And I am faced with two options basically. One is to kill you Silver," she began to power up the gun and I knew she could do it. That murderous glint in her eyes ensured that Rose was capable of murder, of anything really. "The second would be to let you go and turn you in at a later point in time to some form of authority." She stopped and turned to me. "What should I do Jim?" I could only stare blankly and think of what to do.

Silver had tried to kill Rose, had planned to kill me, Amelia, and Delbert along with anyone else who got in the way of his plans. All he wanted was the treasure. All he cared about was Flint's Trove. He was willing to do just about anything in order to get that treasure. I, in turn, was going to do anything to prevent that, even if it meant murdering him.

"He doesn't deserve to die. Bring him back; we'll let him rot out the rest of his days in jail," I finally said. Rose nodded firmly and lowered her weapon.

"We'll kill his crew though. We can leave them all here to suffer and starve in… reparation for what their despicable _leader_ has done," she spat. Silver glared at the two of us and Morph was hidden to avoid that evil gaze.

"Let's go get _our_ treasure Rose," I said, taking my own weapon out of my boot. I led the way towards B.E.N.'s place atop the hill.

"Try anything funny cyborg and I'll make sure that it is the _last_ thing you _ever_ do," Rose hissed at him. When I came to the large entrance of the hideout that was no longer a secret, everyone jumped up. Well, the Doctor Doppler jumped up, B.E.N. lunged at me, and Amelia continued to sleep.

"Guys, we've got Silver as a hostage. And the map is ours. And Rose… is alive," I said quickly.

"Come again?" the doctor asked in semi-shock. I turned and waved Rose in.

After going through the entire story of what had happened since I left B.E.N.'s home, and after them all accepting that Rose was actually standing there alive, we decided to use Silver in order to round up his crew. After getting them into our little fortress up in B.E.N.'s home, we would check with the map and figure out our next step.

**((A/N: TEN people have this set as a favorite; TWENTY have it as an alert. So WHY am I only seeing TWO reviews for the last chapter. I wasn't going to update. Not lying. I have seriously been considering pulling this story. I know what will happen. It's not on paper, but I have it all planned out. So why write anymore? No one likes it I guess or they just don't care.  
I want TEN reviews for this chapter or I won't update. So all of you with this as a favorite or on an alert, PLEASE review. I seriously don't know why I continue.  
Expect an update around the week of Thanksgiving if I get updates. I might have enough time to type it out, so we'll see. Let me know what you think, even if it's just a "Keep up the good work" or "Update please." At least then I KNOW someone read it and wants more.  
PLEASE !  
And THANK YOU SO MUCH TO THE FOLLOWING REVIEWERS (You're the reason I do this):  
**Muriel Candytuft (First Reviewer for this story!) Jackie99 .Bessie XD. Andd XHazelEyesx Minke Rorykins Foxy mew mew 031 Xcorezombie Nausicaa of the Spirits Kaptain Kitty asotingurl34 Christian4Life Hatsue Cybanne God'schild777 I am Brooklyn Songorita Edward Cullen's Girl **(If you're not on the list and you reviewed, let me know and I will add you!)**

**AND! The story is at 99 pages with the addition of this chapter (not counting authors notes and reviews and other stuff. The story alone. Ninety-nine pages.))**


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